Japan, eyeing Olympics, lines up half-billion doses of COVID-19 vaccine

Japan is making an aggressive move to grab enough coronavirus vaccine to inoculate its population four times over, a push the government hopes will instil confidence that it can host a delayed Summer Olympics next year.

Like other rich countries, Japan is signing multiple deals because some of the vaccines could fail in clinical trials or require more than one dose.

But Japan has something else riding on a successful mass rollout of a vaccine: outgoing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s aim to bring thousands of athletes and fans to Tokyo for the Games, postponed from this year due to the pandemic.

On the day he announced his resignation as premier, Abe sought to reassure domestic and foreign audiences that the coronavirus was under control. He pledged there would be enough vaccine for Japan by the middle of 2021 and said the nation would relax its travel ban from Sept. 1.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga earlier had said Japan was working with Olympic organisers on how to go ahead with the Games, tying the effort to the need to secure a vaccine.

The various companies “will probably be able to produce a vaccine between the end of this year and next March”, Suga told Reuters in an interview this week. “There are a lot of considerations, but we want to hold the Olympics at all costs.”

Japan is on track to have 521 million doses of five different vaccines in 2021, compared with a population of 126 million. Recent deals include global arrangements with such drugmakers as Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) and AstraZeneca PLC (AZN.L), as well as local deals with the likes of Shionogi & Co. (4507.T). “You have to bet evenly to avoid getting nothing,” said Tomoya Saito, director at Japan’s National Institute of Public Health.

Some critics contend that Japan’s rush to secure supplies is driven largely by a political desire to show the world it is fully committed to the Games. “The plan is, hope for a miracle and then capitalise on that miracle,” said Michael Cucek, a political science professor at Temple University Japan. “But the timeframe for that is getting narrower and narrower.” Health ministry and cabinet Office officials did not respond to queries about whether Japan’s drive to secure coronavirus vaccines was connected to the Olympics.

Abe pledged to increase testing capacity to 200,000 per day along with securing vaccine supplies. He also said Japan’s travel ban, one of the strictest in the world, would ease on Sept. 1.

From that date, non-citizen residents of Japan and visa holders can leave and reenter the country, with prior authorisation. They must also demonstrate a negative coronavirus test result within 72 hours of returning to Japan, cabinet officials said at a briefing on Friday.Japanese officials have discussed putting on a “simplified” Games, originally expected to attract 600,000 visitors. But the event would still involve some 11,000 athletes.

Holding the Olympics requires “mass quantities of an effective vaccine”, said Kenji Shibuya, director of the Institute of Population Health at King’s College, London. Staging an Olympics in a pandemic will be a huge logistical challenge, as athletes will have to train and travel to events and many more thousands of fans will have to be accommodated at a time when many countries may still be in lockdown. Japan still has a travel ban in place covering more than 140 countries.

Even with a viable vaccine, the additional challenge of immunising athletes and visitors before or after landing in Japan will be enormous.

A “very, very essential factor” will be when an effective vaccine will be ready and how it will be distributed, Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike told Reuters.

“We will do our best to prevent coronavirus infections here in Japan and also to welcome the athletes from all over the world.”

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Rain-related incidents claim several lives in KP

At least 14 people were killed and eight others injured in various rain-related incidents during the latest torrential downpours in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to a report compiled by the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA).

It said three people, including a woman and two children, died in Swat while eight people were killed in various incidents caused by the heavy rainfall in Upper Kohistan.

Besides, the rain played havoc with as many as 40 houses in Swat, out of which 16 were completely destroyed while 24 partially damaged. Whereas, eight houses were completely destroyed in Upper Kohistan.

Three people got injured in rain-related incidents in Mardan while two in North Waziristan.

It is to mention here that nine people, including two children, died in three separate incidents caused by recent rains in Punjab.

At least 21 people have been killed in rain-related incidents in Karachi during the fresh spell of monsoon that started on Thursday and broke a 90-year-old, playing havoc with the city’s ill-maintained infrastructure.

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Punjab reports 533 suspected patients of dengue fever during last 24 hours

As many as 533 suspected patients of dengue fever have been reported in Punjab during last 24 hours, said spokesperson Punjab Primary and Secondary Health Department on Friday.

The patients are being tested under surveillance after first aid. So far 45 patients of the dengue fever have been reported in Punjab out of which three have recovered their health back, said the spokesperson.

Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid last week had said that emergency measures being taken by the provisional government against dengue outbreak.

She said that all tehsil municipal administrations, development authorities and water and sanitation companies have been clearly advised that stagnant water ponds be immediately filled with soil and anti-dengue sprays should be carried out on such places.

The minister said that dengue fever is a severe, flu-like illness that affects infants, young children and adults and in case of dengue like symptoms patient should immediately consult to medical practitioner.

She said the current weather was very conducive for dengue larva growth.

The outbreak of dengue fever could stretch the healthcare resources amid the country’s struggle against COVID-19 pandemic.

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My aim is to score century in T20I series against England: Babar

Pakistan’s limited-overs captain Babar Azam has aimed to score a century in the upcoming T20I series against England, starting from August 28th in Manchester.

While talking to reporters, the 25-year-old was disappointed on his performances in Test series but he has analyzed his mistakes and will try to rectify in the upcoming Test matches.

“I always try to play as well as I can. It is one of my goals to score a century in T20Is and to be honest, my aim is to score one in this series,” Babar said.

“It’s disappointing that I couldn’t convert my starts into big scores but I will learn from these mistakes. I have analyzed those in order to get better in the forthcoming series,” he added.

Babar was optimistic about emerging batsman Haider Ali debut, who have selected in the shorter format after his impressive performances in Pakistan Super League (PSL) and at the junior level.

“He is a great talent and an outstanding player. We have tried to involve him in this group. He is playing well in nets and also in the practice matches,” he added.

The world number one ranked T20I batsman was in awe of all-rounder Shadab Khan, who performed brilliantly in this year’s PSL while batting up the order. “He played outstandingly, scored runs and took wickets. We will plan and try to utilize him up the order,” Babar maintained.

It must be noted that the national team has arrived in Manchester for the T20I series.

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Poland re-introduces ban on flights from 46 countries

Poland will ban flights from 46 countries, including France and Spain, as of Sept 2, according to a draft regulation published on Thursday, as the country grapples with a spike in coronavirus infections.

The move follows targeted measures to reintroduce restrictions on public life in the worst affected parts of the country, as the government tries to tackle the spread of the virus without resorting to a complete lockdown.

“Due to the threat of spreading SARS CoV-2 virus infections, it is necessary to exercise the right to introduce air traffic bans... in order to minimize the threat to public health,” the regulation said.

Poland closed its borders and suspended flights in March to stop the spread of the coronavirus. However, it progressively loosened restrictions on public life, with shopping centres, hotels and restaurants all reopening in May.

Polish national airline PLL LOT resumed international flights on July 1 almost four months after suspending them.

Other countries affected by the ban are popular tourist destinations Montenegro and Croatia, as well as Romania, the United States, Israel, Mexico and Brazil.

Poland has reported 64,689 cases of the novel coronavirus and 2,010 deaths.

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Trump assails rival Biden in White House speech accepting nomination

A defiant President Donald Trump accepted the Republican nomination for a second term on Thursday with a scathing attack on rival Joe Biden, asserting that a Democratic victory in November would only exacerbate the racial strife and coronavirus pandemic besieging the nation.

Speaking from the White House South Lawn despite criticism he was using the executive residence as a political prop, Trump portrayed Biden, a career politician with a long record as a moderate, as a far-left extremist who would usher in a lawless, dangerous America.

"This election will decide whether we protect law-abiding Americans, or whether we give free rein to violent anarchic agitators and criminals who threaten our citizens," Trump said on the fourth and final night of the Republican National Convention in a speech that lasted more than an hour.

"No one will be safe in Biden's America."

Despite the pandemic that has killed more than 180,000 Americans, Trump delivered his remarks before a crowd of more than 1,000 people, standing in front of dozens of American flags and basking in chants of "Four more years!" and "USA!"

His language was evocative of his 2016 convention acceptance speech, which also came at a time of racial tension after eight police officers were killed in Texas and Louisiana amid protests following shootings of Black men.

"Americans watching this address tonight have seen the recent images of violence in our streets and the chaos in our communities," he said then, vowing to end the turmoil.

But Trump, who ran successfully as an insurgent four years ago, is now in control at the White House, complicating his assertion once again that only he can solve the problem.

Republicans on Thursday sought to advance that message after days of civil unrest and violence in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where on Sunday police shot a Black man, Jacob Blake. They inaccurately asserted that Biden would "defund the police." Biden has rejected that position.

As the night unfolded, Biden struck back on Twitter, writing, "When Donald Trump says tonight you won't be safe in Joe Biden's America, look around and ask yourself: How safe do you feel in Donald Trump's America?"

In trying to paint Biden as a tool of the "radical left," Trump also distorted the Democrat's policy positions on a host of other issues, including immigration, guns, law enforcement, abortion and energy production.

"If given the chance, he will be the destroyer of American greatness," Trump warned.

The made-for-television scene - befitting the first reality TV host to serve as president - stood in marked contrast to Biden's acceptance speech last week, which was broadcast live from a largely empty arena in a nod to the disease.

Following the speech, fireworks exploded over the nearby Washington Monument as the president and his family looked on, giving Trump and the convention a powerful closing image.

The crowd, seated in white chairs inches apart, showed little evidence of social distancing or face masks despite health experts' recommendations. But the Trump campaign said it had taken appropriate health precautions in arranging the South Lawn event.

In a reminder of the country's divisions, attendees could hear anti-Trump protesters sounding horns near the White House as he spoke, a noise that occasionally was audible on the live broadcast.

Shifting blame

Trump, a former New York real estate developer, is seeking to turn around a re-election campaign that has been largely overshadowed by a health crisis that has put millions of Americans out of work and killed more people than in any other country, according to a Reuters tally.

His campaign comes against the backdrop of a fresh wave of protests over the latest high-profile police shooting of a Black American. In Kenosha, relative calm returned after three nights of civil strife ending on Tuesday, including arson, vandalism and deadly shootings.

In his speech on Thursday, Trump again blamed China for the pandemic and promised in his second term to levy tariffs on any company that left America to create jobs overseas, one of the rare concrete policy proposals of the night.

He also promised to rebuild what Republicans have called the "greatest economy" in history and attacked Biden for saying he would shut down the country if necessary to slow the spread of the disease. Many health experts blame a resurgence of coronavirus cases on states that reopened businesses too soon.

"Joe Biden's plan is not a solution to the virus, but rather a surrender," Trump said.

While Trump's popularity among Republican voters remains high, dissent is mounting within the party.

In three open letters published on Thursday and Friday, Biden won endorsements from more than 160 people who worked for Republican former President George W. Bush or for past Republican presidential candidates Mitt Romney and John McCain, the New York Times and Politico reported.

Thursday's program aimed to counterbalance those defections with a video showcasing former Democratic voters who say they now support Trump and remarks from US Representative Jeff Van Drew, who abandoned the Democratic Party to join the Republicans.

Trump kicked off the week on Monday by accusing Democrats of seeking to steal the election by advocating for mail-in voting. His previous high-profile speeches have also emphasized grim themes, including his inaugural address in January 2017 that described "American carnage."

With both parties' conventions now complete, the campaign enters a final, frenetic stretch. Biden, who has largely eschewed in-person events since March because of the pandemic, said at a Thursday fundraiser he expects to travel to several battleground states after early September, albeit in a manner he described as responsible.

Trump, who has visited several battleground states during the pandemic, also plans to increase his campaign travel.

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Japanese PM Shinzo Abe quits over health issues

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced Friday he will resign over health problems, in a development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world’s third-largest economy.

"I have decided to step down from the post of the prime minister," he told a press conference, saying he was suffering from a recurrence of the ulcerative colitis that ended his first term in office.

Abe said he was receiving a new treatment for the condition, which needed to be administered on a regular basis which would not leave him with sufficient time to discharge his duties.

"Now that I am not able to fulfil the mandate from the people with confidence, I have decided that I should no longer occupy the position of the prime minister."

Abe is expected to stay in office until his ruling Liberal Democratic Party can choose a successor, in an election likely to take place among the party’s lawmakers and members.

There is no clear consensus on who will succeed him, with likely candidates including Finance Minister Taro Aso and chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga.

Abe, who stepped down as prime minister just one year into his first term, in 2007, offered his apologies for the second resignation.

"I would like to sincerely apologise to the people of Japan for leaving my post with one year left in my term of office, and amid the coronavirus woes, while various policies are still in the process of being implemented," Abe said, bowing deeply.

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