Anadolu Agency's Morning Briefing – December 1, 2020

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

Coronavirus and other developments in Turkey

Stepping up measures against a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, Turkey on Monday introduced new restrictions, including a curfew on weeknights and a full weekend curfew.

"A general curfew will be applied every weeknight from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.," President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the public, adding there will also be a weekend-long curfew from 9 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday.

Turkey's coronavirus cases reached 500,865 as 6,514 new symptomatic cases were recorded over the past 24 hours. The country reported a total of 31,219 COVID-19 infections, including the symptomatic ones, according to the Health Ministry.

As many as 4,485 people also recovered from the disease, pushing the tally to 404,727. The number of fatalities, meanwhile, rose by 188, bringing the virus-linked death toll to 13,746.

More than 176,650 coronavirus tests were conducted in the period, taking the total to over 18.59 million. The number of patients in critical condition now stands at 5,190.

Turkey's economy grew 6.7% year-on-year in the third quarter of 2020, said TurkStat. The country's exports rose 5.6%, reaching $17.33 billion in October, with imports up 8.4% at $19.7 billion.

Technical talks between Turkish and Russian military delegations on a joint center to be established in Nagorno-Karabakh are proceeding as planned, said Turkey's national defense minister.

Germany welcomed the return to port of the Turkish research vessel Oruc Reis after completing its energy exploration mission in the Eastern Mediterranean, while NATO's secretary general said the Oruc Reis' return to port helps reduce tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean between NATO members Turkey and Greece.

At its summit next month, the EU will assess its relations with Turkey not over one action but on Turkey's actions over a period of time, said an EU spokesperson.

Global developments

Animal lovers, artists and government officials joined an emotional moment in Pakistan's capital to see off the country's "loneliest" elephant as it left for a wildlife sanctuary in Cambodia to spend its retired life.

The global tourism sector will close this year with losses worth $3 trillion due to the COVID-19 pandemic, said Bulut Bagci, the head of the World Tourism Forum Institute.

A new round of negotiations aimed at securing peace in Syria began Monday in Geneva with heavy restrictions placed by the UN on access to delegates due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

NATO has invited US President-elect Joe Biden to a summit in Brussels in early 2021, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told a press conference.

Azerbaijan's army has entered the Lachin region following 28 years of occupation by Armenian forces, the country's Defense Ministry announced early Tuesday local time.

Global COVID-19 developments

At least 225 more people in Africa died of the novel coronavirus, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said, bringing the death toll in the continent to 51,708.

US biotechnology firm Moderna says its vaccine efficacy against COVID-19 is 94.1%, filing immediately for Emergency Use Authorization. The US could have two COVID-19 vaccines in circulation by mid to late December, a top health official announced Monday.

Italy reported 16,377 new cases of the novel coronavirus, almost halved from the peaks seen in recent weeks as the contagion curve continues to flatten.

Spain reported nearly 20,000 new coronavirus infections and 401 more deaths between Friday and Monday after a weekend marked by large crowds in some Spanish cities.

France saw positive trends Monday amid the second wave of the coronavirus after the lifting of confinement entered its first stage over the weekend. -