South Asia
United Kingdom Cabinet Minister and President of the United Nations Climate Change Conference Alok Sharma has arrived in New Delhi to meet with government officials as well as business and civil society leaders. He is expected to discuss the UK’s coordination with India on climate issues as well as review India’s progress on “climate action and clean energy transition”. [ANI]
The Indian health ministry has revealed that only one in ten health workers have received the second dose of their COVID-19 vaccine. Given that the nation’s vaccination program began on January 16 and that all healthcare workers were expected to be fully inoculated by now, these figures suggest that many workers are voluntarily opting out of the vaccine, possibly due to distrust over its efficacy. [The Hindu]
Central Asia and the Caucasus
The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the European Union (EU) are launching a €40 million COVID-19 vaccination program to help Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, among other regional member countries, to strengthen their “preparedness and readiness” for the pandemic. Other beneficiaries of the program are Belarus, Moldova, and Ukraine. The program is part of Eastern Partnership and will be funded by the EU over the next three years. [RFE/RL]
On Sunday, hundreds of Kyrgyz activists protested against rampant corruption in the country’s government. The activists also protested a recent ruling by a court in Bishkek that reduced the punishment and revoked the jail sentence for former customs official Raimbek Matraimo. In 2019, Matraimo was found guilty of “illegally funnelling” hundreds of millions of dollars outside the country. [RFE/RL]
East and Southeast Asia
Myanmar’s military leader, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, granted amnesty to 23,000 prisoners on the country’s Union Day, which celebrates the unification of the country. The leader also called on the people to “join hands” with the new government that thousands have been protesting against since it forcefully took over power on February 1. According to the junta, the aim of remitting prisoners is to turn them into “certain decent citizens”. [Al Jazeera]
The World Health Organisation (WHO) team wrapped up its 28-day research schedule in Wuhan this weekend. However, no clear leads have been found with regards to the origin of the virus. In fact, the team has come up with several new theories about the virus “starting elsewhere” and arriving in Wuhan on the “packaging of frozen imported food products”. [ABC]
Europe
Exit polls are projecting a huge electoral win for Kosovo’s anti-establishment party Vetevendosje, with 90% of the votes already counted. The victory will give the country’s ousted ex-PM Albin Kurti the largest margin of support won in any election since NATO’s bombing campaign ended Serbian rule over Kosovo in 1999. [Politico]
Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny’s supporters held candle-lit mini demonstrations in residential courtyards across Russia on Sunday, after state authorities warned that people taking part in unauthorized rallies could face criminal charges. People posted photos on social media with the hashtag #LoveIsStrongerThanFear in Russian and English. [DW]
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow is “ready” to cut ties with the European Union if it is hit with sanctions “in some sectors that create risks for our economy”. He said, “We don’t want to isolate ourselves from global life, but we have to be ready for that. If you want peace then prepare for war.” [Euractiv]
Latin America and the Caribbean
Chilean President Sebastian Piñera was administered the first dose of the Chinese-made Sinovac coronavirus vaccine. Now, 1.5 million citizens aged 71 or more are set to receive their injections. Piñera said, “I want to tell all my compatriots that this vaccine is safe, it is effective, and we have made an enormous effort to be able to vaccinate all Chileans.” [Merco Press]
Former Argentinian President Carlos Menem, who was in office between 1989 and 1999, died at the age of 90. He is known for deregulating the market by “removing controls on prices and interest rates” and selling the state-owned phone and oil companies, airline, race tracks, and steel mills. He also brought Argentina closer to the United States after many years of close ties with the Soviet Union under the Non-Aligned Movement, and deployed Argentinian troops to the 1991 Gulf War. [Associated Press]
Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the United Nations, Abdullah Al-Muallami, said that the Kingdom will continue to recognise “Houthi militia as a terrorist organisation and address its threats with military action”, despite the US’ decision to withdraw its designation of the rebels as a terror group. [Middle East Monitor]
The United States Department of Justice’s spokesperson, Marc Raimondi, revealed that Washington has sold 1.2 million barrels of fuel seized from Iranian tankers headed to Venezuela. Although he did not confess the sale price, it is thought to have fetched the US tens of millions of dollars in revenue. [Al-Masdar News]
North America
Former US President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial ended on Saturday. The US Senate failed to convict him for his alleged role in inciting the deadly riots at the US Capitol on January 6. The chamber voted 57-43 in favour of acquittal, with 7 GOP Senators joining the Democrats to find Trump guilty. [ABC News]
On the third anniversary of the Parkland school shooting in Florida on Sunday, US President Joe Biden urged Congress to pass “common-sense gun law reforms,” including banning assault weapons. [The White House]
More than a 100 people took to the streets of downtown Vancouver, Canada on Sunday afternoon to participate in an annual march in memory of Indigenous women and girls who have been killed and gone missing across the country. The first such demonstration was held in 1992. [Al Jazeera]
Oceania
Health Minister Greg Hunt announced that Australia has now received 142,000 doses of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine and that 80,000 first doses will be administered starting next Monday. Of these, 50,000 have been reserved for hotel quarantine staff, and border and healthcare workers. [Sydney Morning Herald]
New Zealand’s largest city, Auckland, has entered a three-day lockdown period on Alert Level 3 after a family of three contracted the coronavirus. [Newshub]
Sub-Saharan Africa
The inauguration of an office that seeks to protect and promote the rights of Ghana’s LGBT community was attended by several diplomats, including the Australian High Commissioner. However, the office has attracted anger from local civil society groups, such as the National Coalition for Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values. [Africa Feeds]
The G-5 Sahel countries, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger, will meet with French officials in N’djamena, Chad for a two-day conference this week in order to discuss joint counterterrorism efforts. This comes after Chad deployed an additional 1,000 troops to the border between Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mali. France, meanwhile, has suggested that it could withdraw at least some of its 5,100 troops in the region because French soldiers continue to be killed in large numbers and also due to rising popular discontent against French military presence. [All Africa]
World News Monitor: 15 February, 2021
A quick look at events from around the globe.
February 15, 2021
Trump impeachment trial. SOURCE: AP