Anadolu Agency's Morning Briefing - Dec. 7, 2021

Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments in Turkey, around the world, and the coronavirus pandemic.

Developments in Turkey

Turkey has administered more than 121 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines since it launched an immunization drive in January, according to the latest official figures released Monday.

World-renowned Turkish scientist and Nobel Prize Laureate in Chemistry Aziz Sancar called for greater investment in the sciences across the Turkic world.

Turkey favors maintaining unity and solidarity with the Gulf states and boosting ties, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said ahead of an official visit to Qatar.

Erdogan arrived in Qatar for a two-day working visit.

Since the rise of the Justice and Development (AK) Party to power in Turkey in 2002, relations between Turkey and Qatar have witnessed rapid development in various fields.

The development of trade relations and cooperation between Doha and Ankara will reflect on the stability in the Middle East, Turkey's ambassador to Qatar said.

The sensitivity of Qatar and Turkey in delivering humanitarian aid to Afghan people should set an example to the international community, the Turkish foreign minister said.

Turkey's president commemorated Jorge Sampaio, Portugal's late president and the first high representative of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations.

An arson attempt last week on a mosque on the Greek side of the long-divided Cyprus island "will not go unanswered," said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck Turkey's eastern Van province early Monday, the country's disaster authority reported.

Authorities in central Turkey have completed preparations to mark the 748th anniversary of the passing of Mevlana Jalaluddin al-Rumi – known in the West as Rumi – a 13th-century mystic, poet and philosopher whose influence carries down to the present day.

-Coronavirus pandemic

British Health Secretary Sajid Javid told parliament Monday that the omicron coronavirus variant is now spreading in the UK through community transmission rather than solely via people who have travelled to Britain from abroad.

The EU drug authority said in a statement that it recommended the use of an anti-inflammatory arthritis drug for severe COVID-19 patients since it reduces the risk of death.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created an additional need of $1.7 trillion for developing countries, said Haoliang Xu, the assistant secretary-general of the UN.

France has ordered nightclubs and discotheques to close for one month beginning Dec. 10 to stem a surge in coronavirus cases, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced.

All private sector employers in New York City are required to implement a COVID-19 vaccine mandate by Dec. 27, authorities said.

The West African nation of Togo received 210,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses from Turkey as part of increased cooperation between the two countries, Togolese authorities announced.

A prominent South African politician, Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi, has tested positive for COVID-19 a second time, his family said Monday.

Nepal reported the first two cases of the omicron variant of the coronavirus in the Himalayan country.

Russia and Argentina also reported their first two cases of the omicron coronavirus variant.

The new omicron variant of the coronavirus was present in Belgium in mid-November, weeks earlier than the first case was confirmed in South Africa or officially reported in Belgium, local media reported.​​​​​​​

World

A video meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Joe Biden will be held Tuesday around 6 p.m. Moscow time (1500GMT), Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced Monday.

The price of Bitcoin and value of the crypto market recovered slightly Monday, two days after a major selloff amid worries related to the omicron variant of the coronavirus and risks posed by Chinese real estate developer Evergrande.

Qatar and Turkey are expected to sign 12 new agreements during a visit by the Turkish president, the Gulf nation's foreign minister said.

At least 48 people were killed in tribal clashes in Sudan's West Darfur state Monday, according to local medics.

Austria's former Interior Minister Karl Nehammer was sworn in on Monday as the country's new chancellor.

Palestine accused the US administration of giving Israel time to complete its annexation to the occupied West Bank.

Algeria plans to host a meeting for Palestinian factions soon, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said.

The UN human rights chief denounced the conviction and sentencing of Myanmar's deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi to four years in prison and called for her release.

The UN must engage in preventive diplomacy to stop a crisis before it occurs, the president of the organization's 75th General Assembly said.

The Tripoli Court of Appeal overturned an earlier verdict to exclude Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar from this month's presidential elections, according to local media.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced on Monday a 10-year £300 million ($398 million) plan to tackle drug-related crime in the UK.

A group of migrants has been struggling to survive for weeks in cold weather inside a tunnel under a bridge in the French capital Paris.

Global banking regulations are expected to gradually tighten in 2022 due to expectations of a continued return to pre-pandemic norms, global rating agency Fitch Ratings said in a statement.

Inflation in the euro area is projected to remain weak despite recent price increases, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Monday.

Ethiopia said that its army has successfully recaptured several major towns and areas from Tigrayan rebels, including the strategic cities of Dessie and Kombolcha.

Malala Yousafzai, famously shot by the Taliban for going to school in 2012, decried the turnabout happening now under Taliban rule in Afghanistan, where freedoms of women and education opportunities have disappeared.

Russia has begun deliveries of the long-range S-400 missile defense system to India, said Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla.

Thousands of workers in Belgium's capital took to the streets to protest inflation and a law limiting wage increases. -