Southeast Asian countries need more help securing COVID-19 vaccines, as the region struggles to contain record infections and deaths driven by the Delta variant, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said.
The region escaped the worst when the pandemic erupted last year, but in recent weeks has seen the highest deaths globally, as soaring infections push fragile health care systems to the brink and expose sluggish vaccination rollouts.
“This COVID-19 surge driven by the Delta variant is claiming a tragic toll on families across Southeast Asia and it’s far from over,” Alexander Matheou, Asia Pacific Director, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said in a statement.
It noted that most Southeast Asian countries including Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia have been posting record COVID-19 infections or fatalities.
Malaysia on Wednesday reported 22,242 coronavirus cases, a daily record, while Thailand announced 312 deaths, a record increase for a second day in a row. Indonesia reported 1,128 fatalities, down from its worst levels above 2,000 late last month, but still the highest daily death toll for any country in the world.
Yet while countries like Canada, Spain and Britain have fully vaccinated more than 60 percent of their people, and the United States more than 50 percent, Southeast Asian countries are well behind, according to a Reuters COVID-19 tracker.
By contrast, Indonesia and Philippines, the most populous countries in Southeast Asia, have only fully vaccinated around 10-12 percent of their people, while Vietnam sits at below 2 percent.
“In the short-term, we need much greater efforts by richer countries to urgently share their millions of excess vaccine doses with countries in Southeast Asia, said Matheou, adding that vaccine companies and governments also needed to share technology and boost production. “These coming weeks are critical for scaling up treatment, testing and vaccinations, in every corner of all countries in Southeast Asia,” he said, adding that there must be a target for vaccination rates of 70-80 percent.
Red Cross: Southeast Asia needs coronavirus vaccine access to curb record deaths
https://arab.news/92bgt
Red Cross: Southeast Asia needs coronavirus vaccine access to curb record deaths
- ‘This COVID-19 surge driven by the Delta variant is claiming a tragic toll on families across Southeast Asia and it’s far from over’
Trump discussing how to acquire Greenland; US military always an option, White House says
- Greenland has repeatedly said it does not want to be part of the United States
- Strong statements in support of Greenland from NATO leaders have not deterred Trump
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump and his team are discussing options for acquiring Greenland and the use of the US military in furtherance of the goal is “always an option,” the White House said on Tuesday.
Trump’s ambition of acquiring Greenland as a strategic US hub in the Arctic, where there is growing interest from Russia and China, has been revived in recent days in the wake of the US arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Greenland has repeatedly said it does not want to be part of the United States.
The White House said in a statement in response to queries from Reuters that Trump sees acquiring Greenland as a US national security priority necessary to “deter our adversaries in the Arctic region.”
“The president and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal, and of course, utilizing the US military is always an option at the commander-in-chief’s disposal,” the White House said.
A senior US official said discussions about ways to acquire Greenland are active in the Oval Office and that advisers are discussing a variety of options.
Strong statements in support of Greenland from NATO leaders have not deterred Trump, the official said.
“It’s not going away,” the official said about the president’s drive to acquire Greenland during his remaining three years in office.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said options include the outright US purchase of Greenland or forming a Compact of Free Association with the territory. A COFA agreement would stop short of Trump’s ambition to make the island of 57,000 people a part of the US.
A potential purchase price was not provided.
“Diplomacy is always the president’s first option with anything, and dealmaking. He loves deals. So if a good deal can be struck to acquire Greenland, that would definitely be his first instinct,” the official said.
Administration officials argue the island is crucial to the US due to its deposits of minerals with important high-tech and military applications. These resources remain untapped due to labor shortages, scarce infrastructure and other challenges.
Leaders from major European powers and Canada rallied behind Greenland on Tuesday, saying the Arctic island belongs to its people.
