China officially launched a digital passport on Tuesday to check the health of travelers, an initiative analyzed by the United States and Europe, where the controversy over the Russian vaccine against covid-19, which will be manufactured in Italy in July, continues.
The pandemic, which leaves 2.6 million dead in 117 million infected worldwide, continues to advance strongly in Latin America, which recorded more than 700,000 deaths, according to an AFP report on Tuesday at 11:00 GMT, based on sources official.
The “International Travel Health Certificate” launched by Beijing – a smartphone app that shows and verifies vaccination history and covide tests – could help open borders. At this time, it is not mandatory and is reserved for the Chinese.
The United States and the United Kingdom are considering adopting similar systems. In the European Union (EU), the idea of a “green passport” will be presented by the European Commission on March 17.
Meanwhile, Europe is trying to speed up vaccination. But as the Sputnik V vaccine began its examination last week by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), Russia on Tuesday rejected the words of a person responsible for the body, who “advised” EU countries to allow it as a matter of urgency.
“It’s a bit like Russian roulette,” said EMA board chair Christa Wirthumer-Hoche, noting that data on vaccinated people is insufficient.
“We apologize publicly,” the creators of the vaccine, the Gamaleya State Research Center and the Russian Sovereign Wealth Fund (RDIF) said on Twitter. “Such comments are inappropriate,” they added.
Eagerly, several EU countries have already turned to Sputnik V, such as Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
– Sputnik V in Italy –
The Italian-Russian Chamber of Commerce announced on Tuesday that Sputnik V will be produced in Italy, an unprecedented event in the European Union.
“Ten million doses will be produced between July 1 and January 1, 2022,” Stefano Maggi, a press attaché to the president of the Chamber of Commerce, told AFP.
Europe is trying to speed up the vaccination campaign. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said he expects “100 million doses per month” to be delivered to the EU in the second quarter.
He also warned that other EU countries could block exports of covid-19 vaccines. Italy, which has seen 100,000 deaths from covid on Monday, has already blocked the delivery of AstraZeneca vaccines to Australia.
Meanwhile, after applying nearly 305 million doses of vaccines worldwide, some countries have begun to relax their restrictions.
The United Kingdom announced on Tuesday the closure in April of field hospitals built to deal with the crisis. Schools reopened this week, the first stage to gradually emerge from the third deadlock imposed in January.
Some restrictions were also lifted in Germany, which reopened bookstores, florists and other businesses in some regions.
Israel, at the forefront of vaccination in the world, has returned to normal almost this week.
– “Maximum mobilization” –
However, other states are facing an increase in the epidemic.
Brazil and Mexico account for two-thirds of deaths in Latin America. The South American giant, the second largest mourning country after the United States, has nearly 270,000 deaths and more than 11 million infections.
Peru, which has more than 1.3 million COVID-19 infections and more than 47,800 deaths, began immunizing the elderly, military and police on Monday.
In Finland, bars and restaurants were closed on Monday. In the Netherlands, the restrictions were extended until March 31, including a night extinguisher, which caused unrest in the country.
In France, the situation is crucial in the Paris region, where hospitals and clinics have been ordered to give up 40% of less urgent medical and surgical activities.