US OFFICIALLY REJOINS CLIMATE DEAL AS TEXAS REELS UNDER ARCTIC FREEZE

The US rejoined the Paris climate accord on Friday even as a Texas-sized political controversy erupted in the country over collapsed power grids and water supply disruption — widely attributed to global warming — in the Republican-run state.

More than 50 people have died from a winter storm that has left millions without power, heat, and water supply in a state famed for warm weather. Local officials, including the state’s Republican Governor Greg Abbott, have blamed “green energy” for the catastrophe, specifically blaming frozen wind turbines for blackouts, and using it as a stick to beat the Green New Deal that Democrats and liberals are advocating. Renewable energy proponents, including Bill Gates, are pushing back, pointing out that the state runs largely on fossil fuels and wind power accounted for less than 13% of the 30 to 35 gigawatts of total outages.

The embarrassing disaster has China rubbing its hands in glee even as President Biden is walking Washington back into the climate change accord, which his predecessor Donald Trump took the US out of to walk into the cold. “Not to be wanting of food or clothing, not to be hungry or cold, this is the fundamental human right that is the most real,” China’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying implicily sneered in Beijing. “In the meantime in Texas ... millions of people found themselves caught in the terrible situation of not having electricity and heating at home, a few tens of people even lost their lives because of this.”

Although electricity has been restored in most of the state, supermarkets are reported to be running out of food and 13 million — half of the state’s population — are under ‘boil water’ orders, with many still without power after five days.

While many Texans are freezing, there is plenty of heat in the political circuit where the state’s Senator Ted Cruz is being roasted for fleeing to sunny Cancun across the border to escape the disaster.

Biden used his first address before a global audience Friday to declare that "America is back, the transatlantic alliance is back," after four years of a Trump administration that flaunted its foreign policy through an "America First" lens.

Speaking to the annual Munich Security Conference virtually, Biden ticked through a daunting to-do list - salvaging the Iran nuclear deal, meeting economic and security challenges posed by China and Russia and repairing the damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic - that he said would require close cooperation between the US and its Western allies.

REVERSING TRUMP, BIDEN SAYS HE’S READY FOR TALKS WITH IRAN ON NUKE DEAL

The Biden administration says it’s ready to join talks with Iran and world powers to discuss a return to the 2015 nuclear deal, in a sharp repudiation of former President Donald Trump’s “maximum pressure campaign” that sought to isolate the Islamic Republic.

Besides signaling Thursday a willingness to talk with Iran, the administration also reversed Trump’s determination that all U.N. sanctions against Iran had been restored. And, it eased stringent restrictions on the domestic travel of Iranian diplomats posted to the United Nations.

The State Department announced the moves following discussions between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his British, French and German counterparts and as Biden prepares to participate, albeit virtually, in his first major international events with world leaders.

The announcement came a day before Biden is to speak to leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized democracies and later in the day address the annual Munich Security Conference. At both Friday, Biden is expected to discuss his commitment to multilateral diplomacy and his desire to undo damage that Trump’s positions may have caused over the previous four years. He’s expected to address the U.S. stance on the 2015 multilateral Iran nuclear deal, the war in Afghanistan and the economic and national security challenges posed by Russia and China.

In a statement, State Department spokesman Ned Price said the U.S. would accept an invitation from the European Union to attend a meeting of the participants — the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany, along with Iran — in the original nuclear agreement.

Such an invitation has not yet been issued but one is expected shortly, following Blinken’s talks with the British, French and German foreign ministers.

In Iran, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Friday the Biden administration action meant that the U.S. had acknowledged moves made under Trump “had no legal validity.”

“We agree,” he added, urging the Biden administration to lift U.S. sanctions “imposed, reimposed or re-labeled by Trump. We will then immediately reverse all remedial measures.”

COVID VACCINES: G7 INCREASE SUPPORT FOR COVAX SCHEME

G7 leaders have pledged to intensify co-operation on Covid-19 and increase their contribution to the Covax vaccine-sharing initiative.

In a joint statement released after a virtual summit on Friday, G7 leaders raised their overall commitment to $7.5bn (£5.3bn).

Wealthy countries are facing growing pressure to make sure lower-income nations get fair access to vaccines.

President Joe Biden has pledged $4bn in US aid to the fund.

An initial $2bn will be donated in 2021, with an additional $2bn coming over the next two years.

Germany pledged an additional $1.2bn with Chancellor Angela Merkel telling journalists: "I stressed in my intervention that the pandemic is not over until all people in the world have been vaccinated."

The EU also increased its commitment on Friday.

The Covax scheme is aiming to get at least 1.3bn vaccine doses to vulnerable populations worldwide in the coming months.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Friday he was grateful for the new commitments but emphasised that more was needed to address the world's vaccination imbalance.

French President Emmanuel Macron is among world leaders calling for further action to address the world's vaccine imbalance - saying Europe and the US should urgently send up to 5% of their supplies to developing nations.

FACEBOOK HAS 'TENTATIVELY FRIENDED' US AGAIN, SAYS AUSTRALIAN PM MORRISON

Facebook Inc is back at the negotiating table, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Saturday after the tech giant this week blocked news on its site in the country.

Facebook's abrupt decision to stop Australians from sharing news on the site and strip the pages of domestic and foreign news outlets also erased several state government and emergency department accounts, causing widespread anger.

The company has "tentatively friended us again," Mr. Morrison told a news conference in Sydney. "What I'm pleased about it that Facebook is back at the table again."

Facebook has publicly indicated no change in its opposition to a proposed law requiring social media platforms to pay for links to news content. Mr. Morrison was not asked about that.

Australia's Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said on Friday he had spoken with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and further talks were expected over the weekend. It was not clear whether those talks have happened.

US URGES MYANMAR TO 'REFRAIN FROM VIOLENCE' AFTER DEATH

The United States on Friday urged Myanmar's military to refrain from violence and relinquish power after the first death in protests against the coup.

"We condemn any violence against the people of Burma and reiterate our calls on the Burmese military to refrain from violence against peaceful protesters," State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters, using Myanmar's former name.

PAKISTAN TO GET 2.8 MILLION ASTRAZENECA VACCINE DOSES FROM COVAX

Pakistan will receive 2.8 million doses of Oxford AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine on March 2 from the international vaccine alliance, COVAX, health minister Faisal Sultan has said as the country announced the launch of a vaccination programme for citizens aged over 65.

Pakistan this month started the anti-coronavirus vaccination drive with 500,000 doses of Sinopharm's vaccine donated by its ally China.

The country said it will launch the vaccination programme for citizens aged over 65 in the first week of next month.

Sultan said that COVAX would provide 2.8 million doses of Oxford AstraZeneca on March 2, enabling the vaccination of older people.

He said Pakistan was among those 65 countries where vaccination has begun while the process could not be started in 110 countries. He said so far 52,000 health workers have been vaccinated.

“Age group of over 65 years is being given priority because the majority of deaths, out of 12,488 till date, have been reported in this age group,” he said.

Meanwhile, another 1,245 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the country on Friday, bringing the country's total infection count to 568,506.

The country also reported 40 patients more deaths, taking the death toll to 12,527.

NEW MEXICO LEGISLATURE MOVES TO PRESERVE ABORTION RIGHTS

A Democrat-led Legislature in New Mexico pushed forward Friday to ensure future access to abortions by voting to repeal a dormant ban on most abortion procedures, marking a defiant counterpoint to efforts in some conservative states.

New Mexico lawmakers approved the repeal of the 1969 statute that has gone unenforced since the US Supreme Court upheld the right to an abortion. Left in place, the statute could go back into effect if the high court eventually overturns the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham previously said she would sign the proposal if approved by the Legislature.

HARRY AND MEGHAN MAKE FINAL SPLIT WITH BRITISH ROYAL FAMILY

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan made their final split with the British royal family, telling Queen Elizabeth that they will not be returning as working members of monarchy, Buckingham Palace said on Friday.

Harry and Meghan, who announced they are expecting their second child on Sunday, shocked senior royals last year by announcing plans to step back from their royal roles.

"The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have confirmed to Her Majesty The Queen that they will not be returning as working members of The Royal Family," the Palace said.

"While all are saddened by their decision, The Duke and Duchess remain much loved members of the family."

Just days before Harry and Meghan are due to appear in an interview with Oprah Winfrey, the Palace said the pair's honorary military appointments and royal patronages would be returned to the queen.

A spokesman for the pair said that they remained committed to service.

"As evidenced by their work over the past year, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex remain committed to their duty and service to the UK and around the world, and have offered their continued support to the organisations they have represented regardless of official role," the spokesman said.

"We can all live a life of service. Service is universal.”