International

• Wednesday, January 13th 2021 - 09:08 UTC

  Brexit fallout: Ireland expects to receive Euros 1,05bn from EU

  

  Ireland is set to receive 1.05 billion Euros (US$ 1.28 billion) this year from a European Union fund for countries worst affected by Britain's exit from the European Union, Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said on Tuesday.

• Tuesday, January 12th 2021 - 09:49 UTC

  BioNTech doubling deliveries with improved production lines and syringes

  

  BioNTech, the co-producer of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine, boosted the 2021 delivery target for their product to 2 billion doses, up from 1,3 billion previously as they bring new production lines on stream and as more doses can be extracted per vial.

• Tuesday, January 12th 2021 - 09:26 UTC

  US openly supports Guyana: joint coast guard exercise and visit of top Navy commander

  

  The United States is doubling its support for Guyana in the territorial dispute with Venezuela, another flank in Washington's campaign to force Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro out of power.

• Tuesday, January 12th 2021 - 09:10 UTC

  Germany and France blast the “digital oligarchy” for shutting out Trump from social media platforms

  

  Germany and France surprisingly backed United States President Donald Trump after he was banned from social media platforms including Twitter and Facebook extending Europe's battle with big technology.

• Tuesday, January 12th 2021 - 08:56 UTC

  Ford after a century in Brazil, closes its three factories with a loss of 5,000 jobs

  

  Carmaker Ford said on Monday losses exacerbated by the coronavirus epidemic and fiscal uncertainties would see it close its three factories in Brazil, where it has operated for a century, terminating some 5,000 jobs.

• Tuesday, January 12th 2021 - 08:16 UTC

  Beijing announces WHO team will arrive on Thursday to investigate origin of Covid-19 pandemic

  

  The World Health Organization (WHO) will send experts to China on Thursday and work with Chinese peers to investigate the origin of COVID-19, said China's National Health Commission (NHC).

• Tuesday, January 12th 2021 - 08:05 UTC

  Taipei releases new passport which prominently displays the word TAIWAN

  

  Taiwan has released a new passport and lawmakers and officials were among the people who lined up early to apply for the redesigned document, which prominently displays the word “Taiwan,” while minimizing the English name “Republic of China” (ROC).

• Monday, January 11th 2021 - 09:55 UTC

  Algae blooms in the South West Atlantic caught on satellite images

  

  In austral spring and summer, conditions in the South Atlantic off Patagonia often become just right for phytoplankton, and populations of the plant-like organisms explode into enormous blooms.

• Monday, January 11th 2021 - 09:54 UTC

  Portugal wants quick ratification of EU/Mercosur deal, but there are many objections

  

  Portugal which last week took the rotating presidency of the European Union for six months as of January 1st, said that it will try to conclude the bloc’s free trade agreement with Mercosur, agreed in 2019 after two decades of negotiations that have not yet been finalized.

• Monday, January 11th 2021 - 09:40 UTC

  US assesses potential losses in agricultural exports to EU if the Mercosur deal is finally ratifies

  

  Analysis by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS / USDA) point out that the country has US$ 4 billion in agricultural exports that may be affected to some extent by the trade agreement between the European Union and Mercosur. The agreement has yet to be ratified by national parliaments.