Philippines to reimpose stricter COVID-19 curbs in capital to arrest surge in cases

The Philippines health ministry on Saturday reported 9,595 new coronavirus cases, marking the second straight day the daily jump in infections remained above 9,000. (AP)
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Updated 27 March 2021
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Philippines to reimpose stricter COVID-19 curbs in capital to arrest surge in cases

  • The country posted a record rise in coronavirus cases in three of the past five days

MANILA: The Philippines will reimpose stricter quarantine measures in the capital Manila and nearby provinces, a senior official said on Saturday, as the country battles to contain a surge in COVID-19 cases that put a bigger strain on hospitals.
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said the measures would be in effect from March 29 to April 4.
The health ministry on Saturday reported 9,595 new coronavirus cases, marking the second straight day the daily jump in infections remained above 9,000. The country posted a record rise in three of the past five days.


Ukraine, Norway, Sweden top destinations for German arms exports

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Ukraine, Norway, Sweden top destinations for German arms exports

  • The economy ministry said Ukraine had received around $2.35bn of arms exports from Germany
  • Norway, a founder member of NATO, bought German arms worth 1.3 billion euros in 2025

BERLIN: Ukraine was again the top recipient of German defense exports last year, followed by Germany’s Scandinavian NATO allies Norway and Sweden, an official report said Friday.
The economy ministry said Ukraine had received around two billion euros ($2.35bn) of arms exports from Germany, which has been Kyiv’s most important backer in Europe in its war with Russia.
After Ukraine, the biggest buyers of German arms were Norway and Sweden, which are regarded as exposed to any threat from Moscow given their proximity to Russia.
Norway, a founder member of NATO, bought German arms worth 1.3 billion euros in 2025.
Sweden, which applied to join NATO after Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine and joined the alliance in March 2024 — purchased around one billion euros worth of weapons.
Finland joined NATO in 2023 for the same reasons but was not among the 10 biggest buyers of German arms last year.