Politics

• Monday, December 21st 2020 - 08:45 UTC

  French mayor threatens with a “Falklands' war” if no accord is reached on UK/EU fishing waters

  

  The French Mayor Frederic Couvillier, of the city of Boulogne-sur-Mer, has threatened the UK with a “Falklands War” pertaining the dispute over the fishing waters with the European Union. Furthermore, the mayor warned of the threat of an armed conflict in light of the looming Brexit deadline.

• Monday, December 21st 2020 - 08:19 UTC

  UK variant of coronavirus is up to 70% more transmissible, but no sufficient evidence that it is more lethal

  

  Following are details of a new coronavirus variant that has been identified in the United Kingdom, given at a news conference by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Patrick Vallance, Britain's chief scientific adviser, and Chris Whitty, the chief medical adviser:

• Monday, December 21st 2020 - 08:10 UTC

  Merkel suggests Christmas greetings with loved ones on video

  

  Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Germans to avoid visiting family members over Christmas and to use video calls instead for greetings, the way service members stationed abroad do, as the country battles COVID-19.

• Saturday, December 19th 2020 - 10:00 UTC

  UK leads Global Ocean Alliance to turn 30% of oceans into Marine Protected Areas by 2030

  

  Some thirty countries have now joined the Global Ocean Alliance championing an international commitment for a minimum 30% of the global ocean to be protected through Marine Protected Areas by 2030.

• Saturday, December 19th 2020 - 09:50 UTC

  Argentina asks Portugal to consider the Falklands a litigation issue and not a British Overseas Territory

  

  Argentina and Portugal foreign ministers agreed on a fluid dialogue and standing contact during the next six months to address bilateral issues, the Mercosur/European Union trade deal and the Falklands/Malvinas question.

• Saturday, December 19th 2020 - 09:45 UTC

  Moderna vaccine receives FDA approval: 5,9 million shots to be distributed this weekend

  

  Moderna Inc's coronavirus vaccine on Friday became the second to receive emergency use authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, welcome news to a nation with a staggering COVID-19 death toll of over 307,000 lives lost.

• Saturday, December 19th 2020 - 09:40 UTC

  Chilean president fined US$ 3,500 after posing for a selfie without a face mask

  

  Chilean President Sebastian Piñera was slapped with a US$ 3,500 fine on Friday after posing for a selfie on the beach with a bystander without wearing a mask as required during the coronavirus pandemic, health authorities said.

• Saturday, December 19th 2020 - 09:30 UTC

  Brazilian senate approves bill facilitating purchase of rural properties by foreign companies

  

  The Brazilian Senate unexpectedly approved a bill this week to facilitate the purchase and leasing of rural properties in Brazil by foreign nationals or foreign companies. The legislation must be approved by the lower house of Congress before the president can sign it into law.

• Saturday, December 19th 2020 - 09:19 UTC

  Pfizer complains of vaccine price confidentiality breach in Belgium parliament

  

  U.S. drugmaker Pfizer complained of a breach of confidentiality after a politician in Belgium published on Thursday the price per dose of COVID-19 vaccines ordered by the country, according to a Belgian newspaper.

• Saturday, December 19th 2020 - 09:05 UTC

  US record imports from China in 2020, despite Trump administration's tariffs

  

  Despite the Trump administration's tariffs on Chinese goods and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. imports from China are surging as the year 2020 draws to a close, The New York Times reported.