MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th March, 2021) The death toll from the coronavirus infection in the world topped 2.634 million, over 118.8 million cases of infection were detected, according to the US-based Johns Hopkins University, which tracks and compiles data from Federal and local authorities, media and other sources.
As of 20:20 GMT Friday, the number of cases globally is 118,851,321, including 2,634,428 fatalities.
The United States still has the highest case count in the world, with 29,320,580, including 531,654 fatalities.
The United States and its allies are plotting a large-scale information campaign against Russian coronavirus vaccine Sputnik V, a high-ranking source in the Kremlin told reporters.
The Azerbaijani Health Ministry told Sputnik that it had authorized the use of Russia's Sputnik V.
The Brazilian Health Ministry signed a deal to import 10 million doses of the Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine from Russia in the second quarter.
US President Joe Biden will seek to make eligibility for the coronavirus vaccine open to all adults in the United States by May 1, the White House said. In his first prime time speech, Biden said that the United States was on pace to administer 100 million doses of coronavirus vaccines by his 60th day in office.
Sixty-five percent of all Americans over the age of 65 have already been vaccinated against the novel coronavirus, White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Jeff Zients told a press conference.
Health Canada stands by its assessment that the benefits of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine outweigh its risks despite multiple European nations halting its use over the fears of possible adverse effects, the department told Sputnik.
Canada will receive weekly shipments of one million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine beginning the week of March 22 until May 10, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.
Pharmaceutical company Novavax said that its vaccine against COVID-19 had showed the 96.4-percent efficiency against the original strain of the coronavirus and the 86.3-percent efficiency against the UK strain during the Phase 3 trial in the United Kingdom.
AstraZeneca will again scale back COVID-19 vaccine supply to the European Union, with only 30 million doses to be delivered by the end of March, media reported.
French drugmaker Sanofi said it had launched Phase 1/2 clinical trial of its second vaccine project, developed jointly with US-based pharmaceutical firm Translate Bio, to evaluate its effectiveness and safety against COVID-19.
The German health minister urged the nation not to blow concerns over the safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine out of proportion, saying there was no proof it caused blood clots.
The inoculation of Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha and other cabinet members with the AstraZeneca/Oxford coronavirus vaccine was postponed indefinitely over reports about severe adverse effects detected in European countries, Apichat Wachiraphan, the head of health ministry's Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute, said.
Japanese pharmaceutical company Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. began vial filling and packaging of AstraZeneca vaccines produced from undiluted solutions in its facilities under the outsourcing agreement with the UK-Swedish company, signed in February, local media reported.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has put off the start of the vaccination campaign against the coronavirus after several European countries halted the use of the AstraZeneca shot.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommended the coronavirus vaccine from Johnson & Johnson's (J&J) pharmaceutical division, Janssen-Cilag, for emergency use.
All countries should closely monitor adverse health effects related to the use of any vaccine, a spokesperson for the World Health Organization (WHO) told Sputnik following the suspension of the AstraZeneca drug in several EU countries.
Russia registered 9,794 new COVID-19 cases over the past 24 hours, up from 9,270 the day before, taking the overall tally to 4,370,617, the coronavirus response center said.
Japan has detected a new coronavirus mutation that differs from UK, South African and Brazilian variants and has presumably been spreading for some time in the Philippines, the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID) said.
The European Commission will put forth next week a legislative proposal for a green pass that will include proof of COVID-19 vaccinations, Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson said.
The US State of Oklahoma is ready to get back to normal by lifting the remaining coronavirus pandemic-related restrictions, Governor Kevin Stitt said.
The Japanese government intends to introduce a daily limit on the number of people arriving in the country, including Japanese nationals and foreigners, to 2,000 to control the possible spread of new coronavirus strains and ensure the effectiveness of current related restrictions, Transport Minister Kazuyoshi Akaba said.
Syrian Ambassador to Moscow Riad Haddad refuted to Sputnik media reports that Syrian President Bashar Assad and his wife allegedly were in the Russian capital for medical treatment after being diagnosed with COVID-19.
Four individuals have been charged by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles for their alleged participation in a conspiracy to commit fraud with COVID-19 relief funds, the US Department of Justice said in a release.
Coronavirus vaccination around the world will be a critical tool to maintain economic growth in 2021, US President Joe Biden said.
The United Kingdom's gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 2.9 percent in January, as a result of the new COVID-19 lockdown imposed in England and the most part of the country, after showing a timid 1.2 percent growth in December, the Office for National Statistics said.
The United States and other countries should pursue moving the upcoming 2022 Winter Olympic Games from Beijing to another place because of China's human right violations and its responsibility for the novel coronavirus pandemic, US Congressman Michael McCaul said.
Growing economic anxiety driven by the COVID-19 pandemic likely contributed to the current rise in attacks against Asian Americans, who, despite being widely perceived as "model citizens," are still haunted by the West's centuries-old "yellow peril" concept, US experts told Sputnik.
