2020-12-31: News Headlines

Online News Editor (2020-12-31). China approves commercial use of indigenous Covid-19 vaccine. laprensalatina.com Shanghai, China, Dec 31 (efe-epa).- China on Thursday greenlighted the commercial use of a homegrown coronavirus vaccine after an interim analysis of clinical trial results showed it is more than 79 percent effective against Covid-19. State-run Xinhua news agency reported that the government granted "conditional marketing authorization for a self-developed Covid-19 vaccine." A unit of …

Online News Editor (2020-12-31). China approves first homegrown coronavirus vaccine for general public. laprensalatina.com Shanghai, China, Dec 31 (efe-epa).- China has approved for general public distribution a homegrown coronavirus vaccine developed by state-owned pharma giant Sinopharm, moving a step closer towards a massive inoculation campaign, officials said on Thursday. The approval came after the developer on Wednesday said it had filed for conditional marketing authorization from the National Medical …

Online News Editor (2020-12-31). Wuhan bids farewell to 2020 without looking back. laprensalatina.com By Jesús Centeno Wuhan, China, Dec 31 (efe-epa).- Life has returned to normal in Wuhan one year after the Chinese government informed the World Health Organization of mysterious cases of pneumonia in the city, whose residents now want to turn the page on one of their darkest periods. In the final hours of 2020, a …

Vijay Prashad (2020-12-31). The Future Will Only Contain What We Put into It Now. dissidentvoice.org Image in homage of Bolivian people's resistance by Tings Chak (China) Towards the end of November, United Nations Secretary General António Guterres addressed the German Bundestag to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the United Nations (UN). At the heart of the UN is its Charter, the treaty that binds nations together in a global project, …

Dr. Joseph Mercola (2020-12-31). Why Lockdowns Don't Work and Hurt the Most Vulnerable. Bankruptcies, Poverty, Despair. globalresearch.ca In a December 9, 2020, Twitter thread,1 Michael P. Senger, an attorney and author of the September 2020 article,2 "China's Global Lockdown Propaganda Campaign," reviewed the largely hidden impacts of global lockdowns. Ivor Cummins' video also reviews …

Online News Editor (2020-12-31). Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy back in jail again. laprensalatina.com Hong Kong, Dec 31 (efe-epa).- Hong Kong's top court on Thursday remanded pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai in custody again after allowing prosecutors to appeal against his bail in a national security law case. The Court of Final Appeal granted an interim order to detain the 73-year-old founder of Apple Daily until a hearing on …

Online News Editor (2020-12-31). China's manufacturing continues growth but at slower pace. laprensalatina.com Shanghai, China, Dec 31 (efe-epa).- The manufacturing sector in China has expanded in December, albeit at a slower pace than the last month. The official manufacturing Purchasing Manager's Index (PMI) slid to 51.9 in December from 52.1 recorded in November, according to the data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) published on Thursday. A …

Online News Editor (2020-12-30). China's Sinopharm says its vaccine is over 79% effective against Covid-19. laprensalatina.com Shanghai, China, Dec 30 (efe-epa).- A vaccine developed by China's state-run Sinopharm is 79.34 percent effective in protection against the Covid-19, the company said on Wednesday, seeking approval from the government for its general public use in the country. The vaccine, developed by a unit of the China National Biotec Group (CNBG), an affiliate of …

Online News Editor (2020-12-30). Proud and patriotic, Wuhan boasts of virus defeat. laprensalatina.com By Jesús Centeno Wuhan, China, Dec 30 (efe-epa).- At 85-years-old, Korean war veteran Chen Jixian cannot hold back his emotions when he recalls the calamities that struck Wuhan when the new coronavirus first emerged a year ago and led to the deaths of 3,869 people, according to official figures. Chen was visiting People First, Lives …

Amandla Thomas-Johnson (2020-12-30). 'Sold out': Uighurs fear deportation as China ratifies extradition treaty with Turkey. middleeasteye.net 'Sold out': Uighurs fear deportation as China ratifies extradition treaty with Turkey | Uighur activists urge Turkish government not to abide by agreement that could put tens of thousands at risk of being detained in internment camps
| Wed, 12/30/2020 – 10: 17 | Supporters of China's Muslim Uighur minority protest in Istanbul against B…

Ulson Gunnar (2020-12-30). Russia-China Civilian Aviation Production Challenges Boeing-Airbus Dominance. globalresearch.ca For decades US-based Boeing and European aerospace giant, Airbus, have dominated global civilian aviation in what many in the industry describe as a duopoly. But as is the case in so many other industries as of late, China's economic and …

Online News Editor (2020-12-30). EU and China conclude negotiations on investment deal. laprensalatina.com Brussels, Dec 30 (efe-epa).- The European Union and China concluded negotiations on a long-awaited investment deal designed to lower business barriers to European companies in China and push toward leveling the playing field between the two economic powers. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen tweeted: "The EU has the largest single market in the …

teleSUR (2020-12-29). China Beefs up Anti-COVID-19 Measures as Local Cases Emerge. telesurenglish.net Beijing has expanded its nucleic acid testing and tightened COVID-19 prevention measures following new reports of local COVID-19 infections. | RELATED: | "The city faces a grim and complicated situation with risks of further infections still present," Beijing municipal government spokesperson Xu Hejian said. | Several locally transmitted cases have recently emerged in Chaoyang, Xicheng and Shunyi districts of Beijing…

Online News Editor (2020-12-29). China says EU investment deal close after 'major progress'. laprensalatina.com Beijing, Dec 29 (efe-epa).- A Chinese official on Tuesday said "major progress" had been made in the negotiations for the business investment deal with the European Union and expected an agreement to be announced at "an early date." European diplomats have signalled that the deal, in talks since 2014, could be finalized on Wednesday. Negotiators …

Online News Editor (2020-12-29). China say EU investment deal close after 'major progress'. laprensalatina.com Beijing, Dec 29 (efe-epa).- A Chinese official on Tuesday said "major progress" had been made in the negotiations for the business investment deal with the European Union and expected an agreement to be announced at "an early date." European diplomats have signalled that the deal, in talks since 2014, could be finalized on Wednesday. Negotiators …

sputniknews (2020-12-29). Beijing Pushes 'National Team' of State-Owned Enterprises to Drive Industrial Growth. sputniknews.com After China's state-owned enterprises (SOEs) were the quickest firms to rebound after the country's COVID-19 related shutdowns earlier this year, Beijing has reconsidered their value in the coming year, especially in light of the self-sufficiency priorities of the new five-year plan.

Online News Editor (2020-12-29). Nearly 282,000 vaccinated against Covid-19 in eastern China. laprensalatina.com Shanghai, China, Dec 29 (efe-epa).- A province in eastern China has already inoculated nearly 282,000 people from risk groups who have received emergency Covid-19 vaccines so far, the official Global Times reported Tuesday. The region was the first to start the vaccination campaign in China. Regional authorities said hundreds of health workers have administered nearly …

Online News Editor (2020-12-29). Wuhan's seafood market, presumed Covid ground zero, tries to turn the page. laprensalatina.com By Jesús Centeno Wuhan, China, Dec 29 (efe-epa).- Wuhan's Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market, the presumed ground-zero for the Covid-19 pandemic, remains sealed off, disinfected and tightly guarded by security a year on from the first reports of the outbreak but on the second floor of the establishment, some are trying to rebuild their livelihoods. The …

sputniknews (2020-12-29). Wuhan's COVID-19 Case Count May Have Been 10 Times Higher Than Reported, Study Finds. sputniknews.com The COVID-19 pandemic first broke out in the Chinese city of Wuhan. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the outbreak of the novel coronavirus was first reported there on December 31, 2019. Since then, the virus has spread to more than 200 countries and territories across the globe, infecting more than 81 million people.

WSWS (2020-12-29). One year into the pandemic, 65,000 deaths in the US in one month. wsws.org One year after the first cases of COVID-19 were identified in China, December was the deadliest month of the pandemic both in the United States and the world.

Ralph Nader (2020-12-29). Recidivist Criminal and Constitutional Outlaw Trump Rushes to Pardon Criminal Lawbreakers. counterpunch.org Serial lawbreaker Donald J. Trump is embarking on the most sordid presidential pardon spree in American history. He has already pardoned convicted crooks, thieves, and violent outlaws. Trump's pardon lawyers are frantically assembling more MAGA besotted individuals and groups to be pardoned wholesale. The number may climb into the hundreds. The queue is long. Trump

Ben Carroll (2020-12-29). After massive cyberattack, imperialist U.S. blames Russia — and China. workers.org U.S. officials and cybersecurity experts are calling it perhaps the most extensive and costly "cyberattack" in modern history. Revelations have come to light that in mid-December numerous U.S. government agencies and some of the world's largest corporations discovered they had been hacked over the course of several preceding months. U.S. . . . |

Uriel Araujo (2020-12-29). Tensions Between China and India May Soon Rise as Trump Approves Historic Tibet Act. asia-pacificresearch.com

Mehr News Agency (2020-12-29). 1st solo exhibition of Iran handwoven carpets opened in China. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Dec. 29 (MNA) — First solo exhibition of Iran handwoven carpets and handicrafts was inaugurated in historical-cultural city of Nanjing, capital of China's Jiangsu province on Tue. in presence of Consul General of Iran in Shanghai.

Danny Haiphong (2020-12-29). US fearmongering on China not rooted in facts, but racism. zcomm.org Bipartisan mistrust of the world's emerging economic superpower rooted largely in bigoted tropes and stereotypes…

Online News Editor (2020-12-28). China court confirms prison sentence to human rights lawyer. laprensalatina.com Beijing, Dec 28 (efe-epa)- A court in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu has confirmed a 4-year prison sentence to well-known human rights lawyer Yu Wensheng for inciting subversion against state power, his wife Xu Yan informed EFE on Monday. According to Xu, the defense attorneys she hired to appeal the sentence, Lin Qilei and …

sputniknews (2020-12-28). One Year After First COVID-19 Report, Wuhan Doctor Who Filed Discovery Rejects 'Cover-Up' Narrative. sputniknews.com While the US government and mainstream media have attempted to rewrite the history of the opening stages of the COVID-19 pandemic to pin the blame for the outbreak on China, one of the central figures of that period has reaffirmed the speed and accuracy of the medical response in Wuhan.

Richard Gale (2020-12-28). A More Honest Perspective of the COVID-19 Pandemic. globalresearch.ca Since the first cases of the new coronavirus strain outside of China, every aspect of the pandemic's ever-changing amoebic narrative has been carefully controlled by the World Health Organization and major government health agencies. | High officials within a syndicate of …

sputniknews (2020-12-28). Biden Says US Needs Coalition for Confronting China. sputniknews.com WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – US President-elect Joe Biden earlier said that he would not immediately end the trade war with China and remove trade duties imposed by US President Donald Trump. During a press briefing on Monday, Biden addressed US-China relations, a COVID-19 relief package and transition problems with the Trump administration.

John Kendall Hawkins (2020-12-28). Doomsday ex Machina: Daniel Ellsberg and the Nuclear Gang. counterpunch.org You hide in your mansion While the young people's blood Flows out of their bodies And is buried in the mud You've thrown the worst fear That can ever be hurled Fear to bring children Into the world — Bob Dylan, "Masters of War" (1963) October 15, 1969. That's the day the world might have

Dean Baker (2020-12-28). China Has the World's Largest Economy, Get Over It. counterpunch.org It is more than a bit annoying to hear reporters endlessly refer to China as the world's second largest economy. It isn't. It's the world's largest economy and has been since 2017. Here are the data from the International Monetary Fund. As the chart shows, China's economy first passed the U.S. in 2017. It is

Vijay Prashad (2020-12-28). China — A Marxist Analysis. mronline.org Vijay on China: A Marxist Analysis…

RT (2020-12-28). Suspect detained in Shanghai poisoning of Netflix producer & 'Game of Thrones' games developer, Yoozoo billionaire Lin Qi. rt.com Lin Qi, a Chinese video game tycoon who was co-producing a new Netflix sci-fi series with the 'Game of Thrones' showrunners, died from alleged poisoning on Friday. Shanghai police now say they've detained a suspect, a co-worker. | The 39-year-old, who is the founder of Chinese entertainment company Yoozoo, was rushed to hospital in Shanghai on December 17 after he felt unwell; he died a week later. Local media have speculated that his tea had been spiked after a dispute among the executives. | "According to investigations on site and further interviews, the police found that a suspect surnamed Xu, who is a co-…

Bertil Lintner (2020-12-28). China Building Great Wall on Its Soft Southern Underbelly. asia-pacificresearch.com

teleSUR (2020-12-28). China: Alibaba Under Further Scrutiny as Regulations Tighten. telesurenglish.net Chinese authorities ordered on Monday that the financial technology company Ant Group scale back its operations as part of an investigation into e-commerce giant Alibaba group. The move comes amidst a wider strategy to regulate Internet companies in the country. | RELATED: | During an interview, the deputy governor of China's central bank Pan Gongsheng said that "the company's governance mechanism is not sound; the legal awarene…

Online News Editor (2020-12-28). Alibaba ups stock buyback plan but shares continue to dip. laprensalatina.com Shanghai, China, Dec 28 (EFE).- Alibaba on Monday said it had upsizes its share repurchase program from $6 billion to $10 billion. In a statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the embattled Chinese e-commerce giant said the expanded repurchase program approved by its board of directors began earlier in the last quarter of 2020 …