International

• Friday, February 5th 2021 - 18:33 UTC

  FAO's food prices index at its highest level since July 2014

  

  Global food prices rose in January for the eighth consecutive month, led by cereals, vegetable oils and sugar, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

• Friday, February 5th 2021 - 09:20 UTC

  Falklands-Munich, Lufthansa completes record-breaking flight

  

  Yesterday at 1:24 pm the crew of the Lufthansa record-breaking flight received a very warm “welcome back” upon their return in Germany. After landing at Munich Airport, the Airbus A350-900 was greeted by the fire department with a water salute.

• Friday, February 5th 2021 - 09:10 UTC

  “Turn off the soundscape” plead marine animals, Science journal reports

  

  A cacophony of industrial noise is disrupting marine animals' ability to mate, feed, and even evade predators, scientists warn. With rumbling ships, hammering oil drills, and booming seismic survey blasts, humans have drastically altered the underwater soundscape.

• Friday, February 5th 2021 - 08:50 UTC

  UK in Covid-19 rare success: it has vaccinated 15% of the population (10 million)

  

  The UK reached the milestone of vaccinating 10 million people, about 15% of the population, according to the latest official reports. “We are on a downward slope of cases, hospitalizations and deaths,” Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said at a televised press conference. “This peak, at least, we are past.”

• Friday, February 5th 2021 - 08:42 UTC

  Uruguay, one the very few “full democracies” in the world, The Economist

  

  Uruguay leads as one of four full democracies in the Americas, according to the Democracy Index 2020, published by The Economist. Uruguay scored 8,61 points out of a possible 10 and ranked fifteenth at world level, while the other “full” democracies in the region are Costa Rica, 8,16; Chile, 8,28 and Canada with 9,24 points.

• Friday, February 5th 2021 - 08:21 UTC

  Bank of England tells banks to prepare for negative interest rates

  

  The Bank of England (BOE) told banks to start getting ready for negative interest rates but added that the message shouldn’t be taken as a signal that the policy is imminent. The BOE made the announcement as it held its key rate at a record low of 0.1%.

• Thursday, February 4th 2021 - 23:23 UTC

  Northern Ireland Protocol controversy forces new round of UK/EU talks

  

  The government and the EU have vowed to “work intensively” to quell tensions over post-Brexit checks at Northern Ireland ports. In a joint statement, both sides said talks on Wednesday with Northern Ireland leaders were “constructive”.

• Thursday, February 4th 2021 - 23:06 UTC

  Russia has offered Argentina fighter aircraft and training jets, defense website reports

  

  Russia has again approached the Argentine government to offer defense equipment, including military planes for the air force.

• Thursday, February 4th 2021 - 09:46 UTC

  Argentine president asks Putin to guarantee supply of the Sputnik V vaccine

  

  Supply of the Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine and the possible elaboration of the shots in Argentina were among the issues addressed by Argentine president Alberto Fernandez and Russia's Vladimir Putin during a Tuesday phone conference.

• Thursday, February 4th 2021 - 09:07 UTC

  COVAX publishes first interim vaccine distribution forecast

  

  The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and the World Health Organization, as co-leads of the COVAX initiative for equitable global access to COVID-19 vaccines, alongside key delivery partner UNICEF, are pleased to publish COVAX’s first interim distribution forecast.