Australia & Pacifics

MELBOURNE, Aug 1 (Reuters) - Australia's east coast states of New South Wales and Queensland faced an escalating battle against the COVID-19 Delta variant on Sunday, with millions under strict lockdown and authorities urging more testing and vaccinations to rein in the outbreaks.

Sydney and its surroundings, under a stay-at-home order for five weeks already, reported 239 new locally acquired cases of the highly infectious Delta strain, matching the record daily number in the current outbreak that was reported on Thursday.

MELBOURNE, July 31 (Reuters) - Sydney's coronavirus cases continued to surge on Saturday as police cordoned off the city's central district, preventing a planned anti-lockdown protest from taking place.

There were 210 locally acquired cases of COVID-19 reported in Sydney and vicinities that are under a weeks-long strict lockdown while battling an outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant. Saturday's numbers bring the outbreak to 3,190 cases.

CANBERRA, Jul 30 (NNN-XINHUA) – Australian leaders have reached an agreement on vaccination targets required for the country’s pathway out of the COVID-19 pandemic, as the most populous state, New South Wales (NSW) reported 170 new local cases.

Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, announced tonight that, the National Cabinet, which is composed of the prime minister and state and territory leaders, “agreed in principle” to a roadmap that will see Australia eventually treat COVID-19 like any other infectious disease.

Canberra, Jul 25 (AP-PTI) Australia has garnered enough international support to defer an attempt by the United Nations' cultural organisation to downgrade the Great Barrier Reef's World Heritage status because of damage caused by climate change.

MELBOURNE, July 24 (Reuters) - Samoa's first female prime minister, Fiame Naomi Mataafa, said on Saturday her government would formally take office next week, a day after the country's Court of Appeal affirmed her government was legal.

In her first comments to the media following the court's decision, Mataafa said parliament would meet at the earliest opportunity next week to pass a temporary budget to keep the government running, giving her and her cabinet time to review the country's financial and economic circumstances.

SYDNEY (AP) — Thousands of people took to the streets of Sydney and other Australian cities on Saturday to protest lockdown restrictions amid another surge in cases, and police made several arrests after crowds broke through barriers and threw plastic bottles and plants.

The unmasked participants marched from Sydney’s Victoria Park to Town Hall in the central business district, carrying signs calling for “freedom” and “the truth.”

Sydney, Jul 23 (AP-PTI) An Australian state government on Friday declared an emergency due to a COVID-19 outbreak in Sydney.

The New South Wales state government reported one fatality and 136 new infections in the latest 24-hour period, the biggest daily tally of new cases since the outbreak began in mid June.

State Premier Gladys Berejiklian called on the federal government to provide more vaccines for the worst-effected suburbs in Sydney's west and south.

Canberra, Jul 21 (AP-PTI) Australia's prime minister says he's urging the government's adviser on vaccines to change its advice against adults under age 60 taking the AstraZeneca shot.

More than half the nation is locked down because of growing COVID-19 clusters.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Japan’s relationship with China was no better than notoriously strained Sino-Australian relations, the Japanese ambassador to Australia said on Wednesday.

Japan’s ties with China are often held up as an example to Australia of how productive relations can be maintained with Beijing despite national differences. But Ambassador Shingo Yamagami said he had encountered a common misperception in Australia about the state of Japan’s relations with China since he took up his post in December last year.

CANBERRA, Jul 20 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Australia’s state of South Australia (SA), introduced widespread restrictions, after the pandemic re-emerged in the community and the number of cases continued to climb in the country.

As of yesterday afternoon, there have been 32,017 confirmed cases of COVID-19, and the number of locally acquired cases in the previous 24 hours was 111, according to the latest figures from the Department of Health.