Politics

• 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.

• Wednesday, February 3rd 2021 - 09:30 UTC

  Falklands strict conditions to ensure “clean” vessels operate in the 2021 fishing season

  

  The Falkland Islands government issued a release on Tuesday announcing the “clean” conditions vessels entering territorial waters for the 2021 fishing season must meet, basically a minimum of two weeks quarantining at sea, no Covid-19 cases on board, and no crew members with Covid-19 symptoms.

• Wednesday, February 3rd 2021 - 09:20 UTC

  Cristina Kirchner political ally accused of human rights abuses in the province of Formosa

  

  Members of the opposition, international NGO’s and several Catholic and Anglican clerics, have criticized Gildo Insfran, the governor of Formosa, and a close political ally of Cristina Kirchner, for treating those who test positive for the coronavirus and their close contacts in an “inhuman” way, forcing them into public isolation centers for over 20 days.

• Wednesday, February 3rd 2021 - 08:03 UTC

  Russian dissident sentenced to 3,5 years in jail despite demands from Western countries

  

  Russian dissident Alexei Navalny was sentenced to three and a half years in a penal colony after a Moscow court found him guilty of disobeying the terms of his probation over the 2014 money laundering case. In the Tuesday ruling, however, the court also took into account the time Navalny had spent under house arrest, meaning that the Kremlin critic would spend only two years and eight months behind bars.

• Wednesday, February 3rd 2021 - 08:00 UTC

  Dragui, ex ECB chief invited to form a new government in Italy

  

  Italian President Sergio Mattarella has invited former European Central Bank (ECB) chief Mario Draghi to talk about forming a new government. Dragui passed the ECB baton to Christine Lagarde in 2019 after an eight-year stint. Draghi is set to meet President Matarella later on Wednesday.

• Wednesday, February 3rd 2021 - 06:42 UTC

  Impact on Scotland's economy if it breaks away from the UK, LSE report

  

  Reuters – The economy of Scotland will suffer a trade shock two to three times more severe than the impact of Brexit if it leaves the United Kingdom, according to an academic study published this Wednesday.

• Wednesday, February 3rd 2021 - 06:03 UTC

  The Northern Ireland Protocol, fails Unionists' testing

  

  The two Northern Irish ports of Larne and Belfast temporarily suspended border checks and withdrew staff on Tuesday amid safety fears. Officials pulled a dozen staff members from duty at Larne Port after an “upsurge in sinister and menacing behavior,” Mid and East Antrim Borough Council said.

• Tuesday, February 2nd 2021 - 09:42 UTC

  Falklands receives first batch of 3,000 doses of the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine

  

  The Falkland Islands Government has welcomed the delivery of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine on Monday 1 February 2021. Upon arrival the vaccines were carefully offloaded from the South Atlantic Airbridge and were transported by road to the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital, where they were immediately taken to refrigeration units within the hospital.

• Tuesday, February 2nd 2021 - 09:41 UTC

  Falkland Islands' vaccination rollout begins 8 February on a priority list

  

  The Falkland Islands' Executive Council on Monday afternoon approved plans for the Falkland Islands Covid-19 vaccination rollout. The two-phased approach has been developed by KEMH and largely follows the approach recommended by the UK’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and immunization (JCVI), with minor adjustments to suit local circumstances.

• Tuesday, February 2nd 2021 - 09:40 UTC

  Uruguayan president will share lunch with Bolsonaro in Brasilia on Wednesday

  

  Uruguayan president Luis Lacalle Pou will be flying to Brasilia on Wednesday to share an informal lunch with his peer Jair Bolsonaro, his first overseas trip since taking office, but also a clear balancing act of the country's foreign policy regarding its two huge neighbors.