日: 2021年12月2日

1. Japan’s transport ministry has retracted a request it made to airlines. It had asked the carriers to temporarily suspend new reservations for all flights to the country. But it has instead asked them to fully address the needs of Japanese nationals who want to return home. The ministry asked the airlines on Monday to stop booking new reservations until the end of the year. The request was made in order to prevent the Omicron coronavirus variant from spreading.
2. Public health authorities in the US have reported their first case of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. They confirmed the case in California. They say the individual is a traveler who returned to the US from South Africa.
3. Russia has sharply criticized the upcoming “Summit for Democracy,” organized by the United States. US President Joe Biden is inviting the leaders of 110 countries and territories, including Japan and European nations. China and Russia, which the US classifies as autocracies, have not been invited.

1. Brazil has confirmed two cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant, the first such cases in South America. The government of Sao Paulo, Brazil’s largest city, reported on Tuesday that a 41-year-old man and a 37-year-old woman tested positive for the Omicron variant.
2. Representatives from the United States and the Taliban have met in Doha, Qatar. The Taliban welcomed efforts by the international community to verify and monitor progress in education for women and girls in Afghanistan.
3. Initial results from the Honduran presidential election show the opposition candidate, who promised to open diplomatic relations with China, will likely win. The Central American nation currently has ties with Taiwan. The national electoral council said on Tuesday that with about 53 percent of the votes counted, opposition candidate Xiomara Castro held a 19 percentage point lead over ruling party candidate Nasry Asfura. The ruling party conceded defeat the same day.