KEY COVID NOS. WORLDWIDE

Pos   /   Country   /   New Daily cases   /   Total Deaths   /        Daily Deaths /           Active Cases   /           Deaths/1M Pop.

               World    3,69,588              /             51,20,795            /             4,872     /             1,81,22,958        /             657

1             USA        44,283   /             7,84,310              /             211        /             92,27,227            /             2,351

2             UK          39,705   /             1,42,945              /             47           /             15,93,546            /             2,091

3             Russia    38,420   /             2,56,597              /             1,211     /             10,39,940            /             1,757

4             Ukraine 10,802   /             77,147   /             442        /             5,08,835              /             1,779

5             Germany              30,483   /             98,361   /             167        /             4,76,258              /             1,169

6             Turkey   23,852   /             73,746   /             215        /             4,44,055              /             862

7             Mexico  942        /             2,91,147              /             58           /             3,47,696              /             2,226

8             Poland   9,512     /             78,879   /             12           /             3,17,938              /             2,087

9             Netherlands        19,197   /             18,750   /             16           /             2,70,249              /             1,091

10           Honduras                            /             10,353   /                            /             2,48,702              /             1,023

11           Belgium                              /             26,321   /                            /             2,15,650              /             2,258

12           Iran        7,494     /             1,28,272              /             105        /             2,08,687              /             1,501

13           Brazil     2,799     /             6,11,346              /             28           /             1,87,374              /             2,848

14           France   3,241     /             1,18,224              /             70           /             1,57,050              /             1,806

15           Vietnam               8,616     /             23,183   /             101        /             1,47,439              /             235

16           Czechia 5,650     /             31,541   /             28           /             1,41,785              /             2,938

17           Norway 783        /             951        /             1             /             1,39,406              /             174

18           India                     /             4,63,655              /                            /             1,34,096              /             332

19           Finland  3,166     /             1,230     /             14           /             1,23,055              /             222

20           Italy       5,144     /             1,32,819              /             44           /             1,20,875              /             2,201

64           Pakistan               240        /             28,612   /             6             /             22,791   /             126

93           Bangladesh         234        /             27,926   /             4             /             8,065     /             167

XI CALLS BIDEN HIS 'OLD FRIEND' AS US-CHINA TALKS BEGIN ON A WARM NOTE

A virtual US-China summit kicked off on Tuesday morning (IST). While US President Biden said he hopes to discuss human rights and security issues, China's Xi Jinping stated that he was very happy to see his 'old friend'.

“Maybe I should start more formally, although you and I have never been that formal with one another,” Biden told Xi over a video conference as the two leaders engaged in their most extensive talks since Biden became president in January.

Xi said that the two sides must increase communication and cooperation to solve the many challenges they face.

The US president added that the two leaders must make sure their relations do not veer into open conflict, including by installing “common sense” guardrails. He promised to address areas of concern for Washington, including human rights and other issues in the Indo-Pacific region.

The talks, which were initiated by Biden and began shortly after 7:45 pm Eastern time on Monday (0045 GMT Tuesday), were intended to set terms for future US-China competition. Biden is expected to press Beijing to honour international rules on commerce and security issues.

The early moments of the two leaders’ video dialogue was observed by a small group of reporters who joined Biden in a West Wing conference room before the heads of state spoke privately in a meeting US officials expected to stretch several hours.

Both sides hope the talks will make the relationship less acrimonious.

The United States and China, the world’s biggest economies, disagree on the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic, trade and competition rules, Beijing’s expanding nuclear arsenal and its stepped-up pressure on Taiwan, among other issues.

US SLAMS RUSSIA FOR ‘IRRESPONSIBLE MISSILE TEST’ THAT CAUSED SPACE DEBRIS

US state department spokesman Ned Price on Monday slammed Russia for conducting a “dangerous and irresponsible” missile test that blew up its own satellite, creating a debris cloud that forced the International Space Station’s crew to take evasive action. “Earlier today, the Russian Federation recklessly conducted a destructive satellite test of a direct ascent anti-satellite missile against one of its own satellites,” Price said. “The test has so far generated over 1,500 pieces of trackable orbital debris and hundreds of thousands of pieces of smaller orbital debris that now threaten interests of all nations.”

Nasa has not yet commented, but its Russian counterpart Roscosmos downplayed the incident. “The orbit of the object, which forced the crew today to move into spacecraft according to standard procedures, has moved away from the ISS orbit. The station is in the green zone,” the agency tweeted. “Friends, everything is regular with us! We continue to work according to the programme,” tweeted Anton Shkaplerov, the current commander of the outpost.

Astronauts on the ISS were forced to prepare for a possible evacuation.

US space industry analyst Seradata tweeted the debris might have been caused by a missile test. “ASAT missile strike now suspected,” the company tweeted, referring to an old Soviet satellite.

TWO SHADES OF BLUE: FRENCH PREZ MACRON MAKES (SUBTLE) CHANGE IN NATIONAL FLAG

It's a change so subtle it went unnoticed for almost three years. But President Emmanuel Macron ordered a change to the colour of the French flag to find echoes of heroism in France's past.

Keen-eyed observers can see that the French red-white-and-blue tricolour flying above the Elysee Palace and also placed behind Macron at news conferences and speeches now has a darker navy blue rather than the previous bright blue.

The navy blue colour marks a return to tradition -- it had been then president Valery Giscard d'Estaing who switched the brighter blue in 1976 so that it matched the colour of the European flag, which displays yellow stars on a blue background.

The change had been made on the flags placed behind Macron at speeches from 2018 and then on those flying from the Elysee and other presidential buildings from 2020, a presidential official, who asked not to be named, told AFP on Monday.

The official said that the navy blue colour "evokes the memory" of the heroes who fought in the French Revolution, the trenches of World War I and in the Resistance during World War II.

The change has finally been noticed after being revealed in a book "Elysee Confidential" published this Autumn by journalists, Eliot Blondet and Paul Larrouturou.

CHINA BATTLES BIGGEST DELTA OUTBREAK AS INFECTIONS GROW IN NORTHEASTERN CITY

China is battling its biggest Covid-19 outbreak caused by the highly transmissible Delta variant, with some areas restricting entry by people from a northeastern city where infections have grown faster than elsewhere in the country in the past week.

A total of 1,308 domestically transmitted infections with confirmed symptoms were reported in the mainland between Oct. 17 and Nov. 14, surpassing the 1,280 local cases from a summer Delta outbreak, Reuters calculations based on official data showed.

This marks China's most widespread Delta outbreak, which has affected 21 provinces, regions and municipalities. It is smaller than many outbreaks in other countries but authorities in China are anxious to block the transmission under the government's zero-tolerance guidance.

A dozen province-level regions contained their flare-ups within weeks, thanks to quick implementation of a complex set of curbs, including rigorous contact tracing, multiple rounds of testing of people in at risk areas, the closure of entertainment and cultural venues and restrictions on tourism and public transport.

However, the northeastern city of Dalian is locked in a struggle with the virus, Wu Liangyou, an official at the National Health Commission, told a Saturday news briefing.

AS CASES SOAR IN ITALY, POLICE GO AFTER ANTI-VACCINE ACTIVISTS

The police conducted searches across Italy on Monday against 17 anti-vaccine activists who were allegedly affiliated with a Telegram chat that espoused violence against government, medical and media figures for their perceived support of Covid-19 restrictions.

Police in Turin said the “Basta Dittatura” (Enough of the Dictatorship) chat had tens of thousands of members and was a prime forum for organising protests against Italy’s health pass.

Like many European countries, Italy requires people to show their so-called Green Pass to dine indoors, visit museums and cinemas and for long-distance public transport. The pass shows proof of vaccination, a recent negative test or having been cured of Covid-19.

Protests have grown more acute after Italy last month became the first western country to also require the pass to access workplaces.

In a statement on Monday, the police said they monitored the now-shuttered Telegram chat for weeks and identified 17 extremists, who threatened Premier Mario Draghi, among others.

“Other recurring targets were also the police, doctors, scientists, journalists and other public figures accused of enslavement and collaboration with the dictatorship in place,” the statement said.

PAKISTAN, AFGHANISTAN TO RESUME ‘DOSTI’ TRANSPORT SERVICE NEXT YEAR

Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to resume the suspended “Dosti” bus service between the two countries in 2022 after more than five years, a move that would help mitigate the travel woes of people living across the border of the two countries, according to a media report on Monday. The decision to resume the bus service was taken during the recent visit by the Afghan delegation.