Europe

GENEVA (AP) — The number of new coronavirus deaths reported worldwide fell by 17% in the last week while COVID-19 infections rose, reversing a decline in cases that first began in January, according to the World Health Organization.

In the U.N. health agency’s weekly report on the pandemic issued late Tuesday, WHO said there were more than 11 million new COVID-19 infections last week - about an 8% rise - and 43,000 new deaths. The number of COVID-19 deaths globally has been dropping for the past three weeks.

BRUSSELS (AP) — In an underground archive below NATO’s headquarters lies a key document that sets out the vision of both NATO and Russia about their future ties, as it was shaped almost a quarter of a century ago. The room is sealed. White gloves must be worn to handle the text.

“NATO and Russia do not consider each other as adversaries. They share the goal of overcoming the vestiges of earlier confrontation and competition and of strengthening mutual trust and cooperation,” reads the preamble of the NATO-Russia Founding Act, signed in May 1997.

15 March 2022; MEMO: Russia got written guarantees under the 2015 Iran nuclear deal that will protect its cooperation with Iran against the recent US and EU sanctions, noting that the guarantees are included in the text of the agreement, Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, said on Tuesday, Anadolu News Agency reports.

Speaking at a news conference in Moscow after a meeting with his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Lavrov said Russia causes no obstacles for the restoration of the deal.

by Assoc. Prof. Dmitry V. Shlapentokh

The West's attempt to marginalise Russia and expel it from Western economic arrangements might well work. Still, a weaker Russia would have no choice but to embrace China. And this would help China to achieve global predominance in the future.

LONDON (AP) — After dropping nearly all coronavirus restrictions last month, Britain is now ending some of its most widespread COVID-19 testing and monitoring programs, a move some scientists fear will complicate efforts to track the virus and detect worrisome new variants.

Officials have largely dismissed those concerns, despite a recent uptick in cases across Europe, insisting that high immunization rates will help dampen future waves of disease.

16 March 2022; MEMO: The Turkish German couple who developed the first coronavirus vaccine are the latest recipients of Germany's most prestigious medical prize, DPA reports.

According to the report, the two scientists, Özlem Türeci, and her husband, Ugur Sahin, were awarded the prize named Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia’s military forces blasted Ukraine’s capital region and other major cities Wednesday as they tried to crush a Ukrainian defense that has frustrated their progress nearly three weeks after invading.

MOSCOW, March 15. /TASS/: Russia is not creating any obstacles for the Iranian nuclear deal negotiations, and they have nothing to do with the events in Ukraine, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Tuesday at a press conference following talks in Moscow with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

"Russia is not creating any obstacles towards reaching agreements, there is no connection between the developments in Ukraine that we talked about and the Vienna talks," he stressed.

KIEV, March 15. /TASS/: Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said the country needs to concede it won’t be able to join NATO.

"It’s clear that Ukraine isn’t a NATO member. We get that, we are sensible people," he said at a meeting with the leaders of the countries that are members of the UK-led Joint Expeditionary Force. "We have heard for years about allegedly open doors, but we also heard that we wouldn’t be able to join. It’s true and it needs to be admitted."

MINSK, March 15. /TASS/: The updated Belarusian constitution, adopted at a nationwide referendum on February 27, came into force on Tuesday. The constitutional amendments to the Basic Law of the country were supported by 82.86% of voters, and a total of 78.63% of eligible voters cast their ballots in the referendum.