South Asia
On Thursday, Bangladesh and the Serum Institution of India entered into an agreement wherein the pharmaceutical giant promised to provide 30 million doses of a prospective COVID-19 vaccine, which is currently being developed by AstraZeneca. [Times of India]
In its quarterly analysis of the situation in Afghanistan, a US-based watchdog, called the US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, said that incidents of violence in the region were up by 50% since the commencement of the peace talks in Doha in September. [Al Jazeera]
Central Asia and the Caucasus
Local reports suggest that at least three civilians were killed in Nagorno-Karabakh following shelling by Azerbaijani forces on Thursday night, as fighting continued into Friday morning. [RFE/RL]
East and Southeast Asia
The World Health Organisation (WHO) is facing renewed pleas to allow Taiwan to participate in a key international meeting amid fears its exclusion could jeopardise efforts to rein in the coronavirus pandemic. Taiwan has been excluded from the WHO and a number of other international organisations amid pressure from China, which regards the self-ruled democratic island of 23 million people as its own territory. [The Strait Times]
Hong Kong’s new hotline for residents to report violations of the controversial national security legislation received 1,000 tips hours after launching. The tip line was announced Thursday by the Hong Kong Police Force’s National Security Department, a unit set up after the June enactment of the law criminalizing subversion, secession, collusion with foreign powers, and terrorism. [Bloomberg Quint]
Europe
On Thursday, four Members of the European Parliament appealed to the European Commission and the European External Action services to condemn the Pakistani government’s participation in the Pulwama attacks that led to the death of 40 members of the India Central Reserve Police Force. They also urged the EC to consider imposing sanctions on Pakistan. [Business World]
After cases of bird flu were reported in several countries in Western Europe, including Germany, France has gone on “high alert.” Meanwhile, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom have ordered a cull of thousands of birds following the detection of the infection in their countries. [Reuters]
The UK has announced an additional $20.7 million in funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), bringing the country’s total support for the agency this year to $66 million. [Middle East Monitor]
A new OSCE report looking into the Belarusian election in August has found that security forces engaged in “massive and systematic” human rights abuses during their crackdown on protesters, that the election was “not transparent, free or fair” and has urged Belarus to “organize a new genuine presidential election based on international standards”. Earlier on Wednesday, the EU launched sanctions against embattled president Alexander Lukashenko, his son Viktor, and 13 others held responsible for the post-election brutal clampdown. [Al Jazeera; EURACTIV]
Latin America and the Caribbean
As a keen ally and supporter of US President Donald Trump, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro stated that he has “good policy with Trump” and said that he “hopes he will be re-elected”. On the other hand, he expressed his concern that Joe Biden would “interfere” in Brazil’s environmental policy, which has come under fire during Bolsonaro’s term for failing to protect the Amazon rainforest against deforestation. [MercoPress]
Heavy rains and tropical storm ETA in Central America have led to at least 57 deaths, with the worst of the impact felt in Honduras, Panama, Guatemala, and Nicaragua. [Associated Press]
Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
According to a Wall Street Journal report, the US is planning to impose sanctions on Gebran Bassil, the leader of Lebanon’s Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) party, for assisting its ally, Hezbollah. The decision has been approved by the Treasury Department and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is expected to announce it in Washington on Friday. [Al Jazeera]
Iran unveiled a new missile system on Wednesday, capable of launching multiple, long-range ballistic missiles. [Middle East Monitor]
North America
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden secured a narrow lead over incumbent Donald Trump in Georgia early Friday, edging closer to winning the presidency in a neck-to-neck contest as some battleground states continue to tally votes. According to most major networks, Biden has a 253 - 214 lead over Trump in Electoral College votes, which means he would need to win two out of the trio of Georgia, Nevada, and Arizona to take the White House. He is currently leading in all three. Trump, on the other hand, has a narrower path to victory, and will need Pennsylvania and Georgia, and either Nevada or Arizona to secure a second term. Though the Trump campaign pursued legal action in several key states challenging ‘voting irregularities’, it has lost all those fights, which means that vote counting will continue. [Reuters]
Oceania
Duong Di Sanh became the first Australian to be charged under the country’s foreign interference laws. Although the offences he committed remain unclear, it is alleged that he “belongs to groups connected to China’s overseas influence efforts”. The charge stipulates a potential jail term of up to ten years. [ABC News]
Australian PM Scott Morrison announced that the first batch of coronavirus vaccines would be manufactured from next week. Australia currently has agreements with four vaccine producers—AstraZeneca, CSL, Novavax, and Pfizer-BioNTech. [7 News]
Sub-Saharan Africa
A disputed election that saw Alassane Ouattara secure a third five-year term as the Ivory Coast president has sparked intense and violent protests across the country and has resulted in thousands of citizens crossing the border into neighbouring countries Liberia, Ghana, and Togo. [All Africa]
Foreign policy and trade experts assert that the United States’ policy in Africa will largely center around countering Chinese influence and expansionism in the continent, regardless of who wins the election. [The East African]
World News Monitor: 06 November, 2020
A quick look at events from around the globe.
November 7, 2020
SOURCE: CLICK2HOUSTAN