Page 20 - HOH

A29
world news Dialuna 7 Maart 2022

Death toll nears 6 million as pandemic enters its 3rd year

(AP) — The official global high rates of cases and deaths.
death toll from COVID-19
is on the verge of eclipsing And despite its wealth and
6 million — underscoring vaccine availability, the Unit-
that the pandemic, now in ed States is nearing 1 million
its third year, is far from reported deaths on its own.
over.
Death rates worldwide are
The milestone is the latest still highest among people
tragic reminder of the un- unvaccinated against the vi-
relenting nature of the pan- rus, said Tikki Pang, a visit-
demic even as people are ing professor at the National
shedding masks, travel is re- University of Singapore’s
suming and businesses are medical school and co-Chair
reopening around the globe. of the Asia Pacific Immuniza-
The death toll, compiled by tion Coalition.
Johns Hopkins University,
stood at 5,996,882 as of Sun- It took the world seven
day morning and was expect- months to record its first
ed to pass the 6 million mark million deaths from the virus
later in the day. after the pandemic began in
early 2020. Four months later
Remote Pacific islands, another million people had
whose isolation had protect- died, and 1 million have died
ed them for more than two every three months since, preventable causes but could The United States has the
years, are just now grappling until the death toll hit 5 mil- not receive treatment because biggest official death toll in The world has seen more
with their first outbreaks and lion at the end of October. hospitals were full. the world, but the numbers than 445 million confirmed
deaths, fueled by the highly Now it has reached 6 million have been trending down- COVID-19 cases, and new
contagious omicron variant. — more than the populations Edouard Mathieu, head ward over the last month. weekly cases have been de-
of Berlin and Brussels com- of data for the Our World clining recently in all regions
Hong Kong, which is seeing bined, or the entire state of in Data portal, said that — Lonnie Bailey lost his except for the Western Pacif-
deaths soar, is testing its en- Maryland. when countries’ excess mor- 17-year-old nephew, Carlos ic, which includes China, Ja-
tire population of 7.5 million tality figures are studied — as Nunez Jr., who contracted pan and South Korea, among
three times this month as it But despite the enormity many as nearly four times COVID-19 last April — others, the World Health
clings to mainland China’s of the figure, the world un- the reported death toll have the same month Kentucky Organization reported this
“zero-COVID” strategy. doubtedly hit its 6 millionth likely died because of the opened his age group to vac- week.
death some time ago. Poor pandemic. cinations. The Louisville
As death rates remain high in record-keeping and testing resident said the family is still Although the overall figures
Poland, Hungary, Romania in many parts of the world An analysis of excess deaths suffering, including Carlos’ in the Pacific islands seeing
and other Eastern European has led to an undercount in by a team at The Economist younger sibling, who had to their first outbreaks are small
countries, the region has seen coronavirus deaths, in addi- estimates that the number be hospitalized himself and compared to larger countries,
more than 1 million refu- tion to excess deaths related of COVID-19 deaths is be- still has lingering symptoms. they are significant among
gees arrive from war-torn to the pandemic but not from tween 14 million and 23.5 The aggressive reopening of their tiny populations and
Ukraine, a country with poor actual COVID-19 infections, million. the country has been jarring threaten to overwhelm frag-
vaccination coverage and like people who died from for them to witness. ile health care systems.

Denmark to hold referendum on joining EU’s common defense

(AP) — Denmark will domestic product by 2033,
hold a referendum in Frederiksen said.
June, spooked by Russia’s Denmark has certain histori-
invasion of Ukraine, on cal opt-outs from the EU’s
whether to join the Eu- common policies. Those in-
ropean Union’s defense clude reservations related to
pact and scrap the Nordic the EU’s common defense,
country’s 30-year-old opt- single currency — the euro,
out from the bloc’s com- which it doesn’t use — and
mon security and defense judicial cooperation.
policies. The defense reservation
means Denmark doesn’t at-
Danish Prime Prime Min- tend EU meetings when mil-
ister Mette Frederiksen said itary operations are discussed
late Sunday that “historical under the bloc’s auspices.
times call for historical deci- Denmark’s defense reserva-
sions.” tion has existed since 1992
when a majority of Danes
Russian President Vladimir voted no to the Maastricht
Putin “has heralded a new Treaty that established the
time, a new reality. Ukraine’s and Defence Policy, or CSDP, Denmark’s security policies represented in her govern- present day European Union.
struggle is not just Ukraine’s. will take place on June 1. vis-a vis the EU was neces- ment were all supporting the
We stand together in Europe,” sary right now. referendum and related mea- Denmark joined the Europe-
Frederiksen told a news con- “It is now that everyone in the sures. an Communities, the prede-
ference in Copenhagen. Western world must make up “Ukraine is the difference. A cessor of the EU, in 1973. It
their minds,” Frederiksen free, democratic country is Denmark would also boost is one of the founding mem-
The referendum on joining said when asked by reporters under attack from Russia,” military spending to meet the bers of NATO, which was es-
the EU’s Common Security why such drastic a change in she said, adding that parties NATO target of 2% of gross tablished in 1949.