Europe

LONDON (AP) — Long lines formed Monday at vaccination centers across England as people heeded the government’s call for all adults to get booster shots to protect themselves against the omicron variant, as the U.K. recorded its first death of a patient infected with omicron.

In a televised announcement late Sunday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said everyone 18 and up would be offered a third vaccine dose by Dec. 31 — less than three weeks away, and a month earlier than the previous target.

LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned Sunday that Britain faces a “tidal wave” of infections from the omicron coronavirus variant, and announced a huge increase in booster vaccinations to strengthen defenses against it.

In a televised statement, Johnson said everyone age 18 and older will be offered a third shot of vaccine by the end of this month in response to the omicron “emergency.” The previous target was the end of January.

12 Dec 2021; MEMO: Britain told Iran on Sunday that there was still time for Tehran to save the nuclear deal but that this was the last chance for Iranian negotiators to come to the table with serious proposals, Reuters reported.

"This is the last chance for Iran to come to the negotiating table with a serious resolution to this issue, which has to be agreeing the terms of the JCPOA," British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said.

ROME, December 11. /TASS/: The authorities of the Republic of San Marino will begin using the Russian Sputnik Light vaccine as a booster dose on December 22, representative of San Marino’s Institute for Social Security Franco Cavalli told a TASS correspondent on Saturday.

"The first shots with Sputnik Light as a booster dose will be administered in San Marino on December 22, almost 300 people have already signed up," he said.

MOSCOW, December 10. /TASS/: Moscow is calling on NATO countries to take the topic of mutual security guarantees as seriously as possible, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said at an online briefing on Friday.

"We are embarking along this path, and this path must be traversed quickly. An assessment of the chances of obtaining security assurances, which we would perceive as security assurances, rather than mere empty promises and meaningless vague language, is premature and ill-timed," he said.

MOSCOW, December 11. /TASS/: The Russian government has fully blocked entry to Russia for foreigners from nine African countries and Hong Kong due to the spread of the coronavirus infection, canceling the earlier exceptions for the holders of diplomatic passports and business visas, as well as for some other categories. A corresponding decree, signed by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, was published on Friday.

MOSCOW, December 11. /TASS/: Russia’s coronavirus cases rose by 30,288 to 9,986,967 in the past 24 hours, the anti-coronavirus crisis center said on Saturday.

Russia’s coronavirus growth rate was 0.3%.

In particular, 2,045 cases were reported in St. Petersburg in the past day, 1,833 in the Moscow region, 733 in the Samara region, 721 in the Krasnodar region and 719 in the Krasnoyarsk region.

There are currently 988,652 active coronavirus cases in Russia.

Russia’s coronavirus recoveries rose by 36,446 to 8,709,964 in the past 24 hours.

LIVERPOOL, England, Dec 11 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a "productive" meeting with counterparts from Britain, Germany and France on Friday, discussing the way forward for talks on the Iran nuclear deal, a State Department spokesperson said on Saturday.

World powers and Iran resumed talks on Thursday on reviving the nuclear pact. A European source said they were working from texts discussed five months ago, while Iranian officials said they were sticking to a tough stance from last week.

BANJA LUKA, Bosnia, Dec 10 (Reuters) - Serb lawmakers voted on Friday to start work on pulling their autonomous Serb Republic out of Bosnia's armed forces, judiciary and tax system, in a non-binding motion meant to pave the way for secession from Bosnia.

The three institutions represent key pillars of joint security, rule of law and the economic system in Bosnia, which was divided into two autonomous regions - the Serb Republic and the Federation dominated by Croats and Bosniaks - after its 1992-1995 war.

LAUSANNE, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Two Tibetan students chained themselves to the Olympic rings outside the Swiss headquarters of the International Olympic Committee on Saturday to call for an international boycott of next year's winter games.

The pair were part of the latest protest against the 2022 Olympic Games over Beijing's abuse of human rights and its treatment of minorities.

The United States will not send government officials to the 2022 Winter Olympics due to China's human rights "atrocities," it said earlier this month.