China has already administered one billion anticovid vaccines and Brazil reaches 500,000 deaths

Beijing (AFP)

China announced this Sunday that it has already administered a billion doses of vaccines and that there are almost no cases of covid-19 in its territory, a still distant prospect in Brazil, where the 500,000 deaths were exceeded.

Thanks to an improvement in the health situation, some countries, such as France and Japan, began to relax their measures against covid-19 on Sunday, while in Russia the restrictions were tightened, due to a rebound in cases, caused by the Delta variant of the coronavirus.

China has already administered more than 1 billion doses of the coronavirus vaccine, the Health Ministry announced on Sunday, without specifying the percentage of the population that has received a full vaccination.

The figure represents more than a third of the number of injected doses worldwide, or 2.5 billion, according to an AFP tally on Friday from official sources.

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In the Asian giant, where the virus has been practically eradicated for more than a year thanks to mandatory quarantines, massive controls and mobile applications to control movements, the authorities urge the population to get vaccinated.

The country, of 1.4 billion inhabitants, only registered 23 new patients in 24 hours, all of them coming from abroad and placed in quarantine.

– Third wave –

A situation that contrasts sharply with that of Brazil, which on Saturday became the second country in the world, after the United States, to overcome the barrier of 500,000 deaths from covid-19, the recent increase in daily deaths confirms the arrival of a third wave.

The latest figure from the Ministry of Health, which according to many epidemiologists is underestimated, is 500,800 deaths, with 2,301 registered in the last 24 hours.

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This week, the weekly average of daily deaths exceeded 2,000 for the first time since May 10 in this country of 212 million inhabitants that has hosted the Copa América soccer since last Sunday.

The situation is critical in 19 of the 27 Brazilian states, with more than 80% of intensive care beds occupied, and 90% in eight of them.

The vaccination campaign in Brazil started late, in mid-January, and only 29% of the population has received at least one dose. 11.36% are fully vaccinated.

Worldwide, Covid-19 has killed at least 3.8 million people and infected more than 178 million, according to a balance established by AFP this Saturday from official sources.

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In France, three days after the end of the obligation to wear a mask abroad, life seemed almost normal and on Sunday the end of the curfew that began eight months ago is scheduled.

France, one of the European countries most affected by the virus, with more than 110,000 deaths, was one of the last to maintain this measure along with Italy and Greece. Other European countries, such as Germany and Spain, are moving towards a gradual lifting of the requirement to wear a mask.

– “Fever clinic” –

In Japan, one month before the Olympic Games (from July 23 to August 8), on Sunday the state of health emergency was lifted in Tokyo and eight other prefectures, but the restrictions that could limit the local presence in the sporting event.

The reduction of restrictions will also allow parties or concerts to be held with spectators but with a capacity of 50% and a maximum of 10,000 people.

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However, the six fan zones originally planned to follow the Olympic competitions in Tokyo on giant screens were abolished.

The organizers of the Games on Sunday opened the Olympic Village to the media and presented a “fever clinic” to test and isolate people suspected of being infected.

Meanwhile, vigilance in Moscow was redoubled, due to a rebound in the epidemic attributed to the Delta variant, which appeared in India. The Russian capital on Sunday registered 8,305 cases in the last 24 hours, marking a slight decrease after the records of 9,056 cases on Friday and 9,120 infections on Saturday.

On the other hand, in Saint Petersburg, Russia’s second city, there were more than 1,000 cases in the last 24 hours, something that had not happened since the end of February.

The city of Moscow and its region were the first, this week, to decree the mandatory vaccination of employees in the service sector. Since then, seven other municipalities – including St. Petersburg and its region – have taken similar measures, according to the Russian press.

Workers who refuse to be vaccinated in regions where it is mandatory may be fired without pay, Russian Labor Minister Anton Kotiakov told Russian media.

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© 2021 AFP

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