Key words : record first time
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201212_21/
Health authorities in Japan reported a record 3,041 new cases of the coronavirus nationwide on Saturday.
It is the first time the daily tally has topped 3,000.
Officials reported 22 deaths related to the virus on Saturday.
Key words : 621
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201212_16/
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government confirmed a record 621 new cases of coronavirus infection in the Japanese capital on Saturday.
The figure topped the previous daily high of 602 recorded on Thursday.
The total number of people who have tested positive in Tokyo now stands at 46,745.
Key words : health ministry hospital
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201212_17/
Japan's medical systems are increasingly under strain as the number of cases of coronavirus continues to rise.
On Tuesday, Hokkaido, Tokyo, Osaka and two other prefectures were at Stage 4, the worst of the four-level alert scale, in terms of hospital bed availability. The scale was set by a government advisory panel to assess the severity of an outbreak.
At Stage 4, there is a risk that healthcare systems may collapse because of an explosive rise in infections.
The health ministry says the nationwide average of hospital bed occupancy rate was 32.7 percent as of Tuesday, up 2.6 percentage points from the previous week.
Hyogo Prefecture saw the highest ratio at 68.9 percent, followed by Hokkaido at 55.1 percent and Kochi Prefecture at 53.5 percent. These three prefectures topped the 50 percent mark set for a Stage 4 designation.
The occupancy rates for those who are critically ill were 57.9 percent in Osaka and 55 percent in Tokyo, also surpassing the threshold for Stage 4.
Key words : united states vaccine combat
#N/A
Key words : food and drug benefit 16 years
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201212_15/
The US Food and Drug Administration on Friday authorized emergency use of the vaccine developed by US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech.
US government sources say the rollout of the vaccine across the country will start within 24 hours from the decision.
A panel of advisers to the FDA met one day earlier to discuss such issues as how to respond to concerns triggered by two severe allergic reactions to the vaccine in Britain and setting a minimum age for receiving the vaccination.
The panel decided in a majority vote that the benefits of getting the shot outweigh the risks in individuals 16 years of age and older, based on scientific evidence.
Following the FDA authorization, moves to supply the vaccine have gotten underway. Vaccines are scheduled to be shipped from Pfizer's depots in the state of Michigan and elsewhere to more than 600 distribution centers across the country.
The first batch is expected to consist of 2.9 million doses, which will be allocated to each state according to the population size and other factors.
In a more than three-minute long video posted on Twitter on Friday night, US President Donald Trump said the US has achieved "a medical miracle" by delivering a safe and effective vaccine in just nine months.
He said the government has already started shipping doses to every state in the country and that the first vaccine will be administered in less than 24 hours.
Key words : vaccine delayed
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201212_02/
A coronavirus vaccine being jointly developed by French firm Sanofi and Britain's GlaxoSmithKline will be delayed at least until late next year.
On Friday, the two pharmaceutical giants said interim results from clinical trials showed an insufficient immune response in elderly people, although the vaccine appeared to be effective in younger participants.
In September, the companies said they plan to seek authorization by the first half of 2021. The need for modifications means it will now potentially be available in the fourth quarter of next year.
The World Health Organization said as of Thursday that 52 vaccine candidates have advanced to human clinical trials.
Some have hit roadblocks. Australia has halted the development of a vaccine after trials showed it could interfere with HIV diagnosis.
Key words : British teaming up
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201212_05/
British pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca is teaming up with Russian researchers to test whether a combination of their respective coronavirus vaccines offers better protection.
AstraZeneca's Russian arm said on Friday that it plans to start clinical trials using the two later this month.
The company is developing a vaccine with Oxford University. Russia has already started large-scale inoculations using the domestically developed Sputnik V vaccine. Both need to be administered twice.
AstraZeneca said in a statement, "Combinations of different COVID-19 vaccines may be an important step in generating wider protection through a stronger immune response."
The clinical trial was reportedly proposed by the Russian side, including the Russian Direct Investment Fund, which financed the research for Sputnik V.
Officials with the fund have said they welcome cooperation between vaccine producers.
Key words : unicef
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201211_39/
A UN report says child poverty is expected to remain above pre-COVID levels for at least five years in high-income countries, calling levels of financial support for children inadequate.
The UN Children's Fund, or UNICEF, issued the report on Friday. It analyzed the economic impact of the coronavirus on children in 41 large economies that are members of the European Union and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.
The report notes that the governments spent 10.8 trillion dollars on COVID-19 responses between February and July.
It says about 90 percent of the funds were spent on businesses and stimulus packages, while just 2 percent were allocated specifically to support children and their families.
The report also says around a third of the countries surveyed did not implement any policies specifically aimed at supporting children.
It adds the social protection measures for children and families enacted in other countries lasted only for several months.
UNICEF is calling for policies that provide long-term support for children, saying the economic impact of the pandemic on them is severe.
Key words : Japan and return
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201212_11/
A group of eight countries, including Japan and the United States, has urged North Korea to return immediately the people it abducted.
The demand was made in a joint statement announced after an unofficial online UN Security Council meeting on Friday that took up the human rights situation in North Korea.
Details of the discussion are not known. But after the meeting, Germany's UN Ambassador Christoph Heusgen read out the joint statement online. He said the declaration was compiled by eight countries, including UNSC permanent members the US and Britain, as well as Japan.
Heusgen said the countries strongly demand that North Korea resolve the abduction issue at an early date, and above all return immediately abductees from Japan and other countries.
He also pointed out that North Korea's enhanced measures to fight the coronavirus pandemic have resulted in human rights abuses. He noted there is a report that pandemic-related executions are on the rise in the country.
Friday's meeting was proposed by the US, Germany and other countries. It was the first UNSC meeting in three years on the North's human rights situation. Japan presided at the previous meeting held in 2017.
The Security Council cannot hold an official online meeting if there is opposition. Sources say the unofficial meeting had been proposed after China and Russia objected to discussions on the issue.
Key words : biden unfair
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201212_09/
US President-elect Joe Biden has suggested his administration will make it a priority to rectify trade relations with China. The United States has called China's trade practices unfair and tried to tackle intellectual rights infringements.
Biden gave a news conference on Thursday in Wilmington, Delaware, with some of the candidates he has tapped for his administration.
His choice for the US Trade Representative is Asian American Katherine Tai.
Biden said that during the Obama-Biden administration she was the chief enforcer against unfair trade practices by China and that dealing with it will be a priority in the Biden-Harris administration.
He said Tai will be working closely with economic and national security and foreign policy teams.
Tai said she is proud to serve in an administration that will strive to make the United States and the world better.
Biden has been an advocate for a multilateral approach to China.
Susan Rice, who was a national security adviser to former president Barack Obama, is slated to head the White House Domestic Policy Council.
She noted that the US needs to work together as it is facing crises such as the pandemic and racial inequity and injustice.
Key words : taiwan boat
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201211_29/
Taiwan has deployed a patrol boat capable of carrying antiship missiles to step up patrol activities and apparently to improve capability to counter China's military.
A ceremony was held on Friday in the southern city of Kaohsiung to mark the deployment, with President Tsai Ing-wen attending.
Tsai said the ship can immediately be transformed into an important defense force if needed.
She also said the vessel can enable Taiwan to strengthen law enforcement and defense capability.
The 65.4-meter-long, 760-ton double-hull craft can travel more than 80 kilometers per hour.
It has a high-pressure water cannon, a machine gun with automatic tracking functions and a multiple-launch rocket system that can track targets at night or in low visibility.
The vessel can also carry 16 domestically developed antiship missiles. Officials say it will join the navy in battle if necessary.
The deployment comes amid a series of incidents taking place in waters near Taiwan, including unlawful dredging of sea sand by Chinese vessels.
The ship is to engage in patrolling and rescue operations.
This is Taiwan's first deployment of a patrol ship with military capability. Taiwan plans to increase the number of such vessels to 12 by 2027.
Key words : tree vatican
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201212_06/
The Vatican's traditional end-of-year festivities are in full swing, despite the coronavirus pandemic forcing officials to make a few modifications.
On Friday, a 28-meter-tall Christmas tree was unveiled in St. Peter's Square. The ceremony normally draws thousands of people to the city-state, but numbers were restricted this year.
On Christmas Eve, the pope's mass will be live streamed.
In Rome, which surrounds the Vatican, some people say they plan to send greetings to friends and family online.
People in Italy are essentially barred from traveling across regions from December 21 to January 6.
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