Here are the latest developments in the war in Ukraine:NATO Never 'More United': Biden United States (US) President Joe Biden says Russia's President Vladimir Putin has failed to divide the West with his war on Ukraine."NATO has never, never been more united than it is today. Putin is getting exactly the opposite of what he intended to have as a consequence of going into Ukraine," said Biden, who has landed near Poland's border with Ukraine.

A top doctor in China's pandemic fight who came under pressure last year for questioning the country’s zero-COVID policy has called again for balancing anti-virus measures with maintenance of normal life as China struggles with an Omicron surge.Shanghai infectious disease expert Zhang Wenhong – who has been called "China's Fauci" after United States (US) disease expert Anthony Fauci – also said in a blog post that the city's medical resources were becoming "strai

Singapore will lift restrictions for all vaccinated travellers from next week, with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Thursday hailing it as a "major milestone" in the aviation hub's efforts to live with COVID-19.The city-state is the latest Asian country to ease travel restrictions in a region that has generally been more reluctant to lift barriers than Europe and North America.A gateway for many travellers arriving in the Asia-Pacific, Singapore had already started quarantine

Long COVID could create a generation affected by disability, with people forced out of their homes and work, and some even driven to suicide, a leading expert has warned.Prof Danny Altmann – an immunologist at Imperial College London – said that the United Kingdom’s (UK) current approach to COVID fails to take the impact of infections sufficiently seriously, adding that more needs to be done to aid diagnosis and treatment of long COVID.“It’s kind of an anathema to me that we’ve kind of thrown

United States (US) biotech firm Moderna on Wednesday said it was pursuing regulatory approval for its COVID vaccine in children under six years old after the two-shot regimen was found to be safe and produced a strong immune response.Specifically, two doses of 25 micrograms given to babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers generated similar levels of antibodies to two doses of 100 micrograms given to young people aged 18-25, indicating there would be similar levels of protection.Children under six

Indonesia on Wednesday officially lifted quarantine requirements for overseas travellers and allowed the resumption of traditional practises for the upcoming holy month of Ramadan after two years of tight pandemic restrictions.The easing of restrictions follows a decline in COVID-19 cases in the Southeast Asian archipelago, which battled an Omicron-fuelled surge earlier this year."The COVID-19 situation in our country continues to improve.

Philippine social media has exploded with support for presidential election favourite Ferdinand Marcos Junior, driven by a massive misinformation campaign aimed at revamping the family brand and smearing his top rival.False and misleading claims have flooded Facebook, YouTube, TikTok and Twitter in the lead-up to the 9 May polls, pounding Filipinos with a relentless barrage of propaganda on platforms where they rank among the heaviest users in the world.Voter surveys show the son and namesake

The Philippines and the United States (US) will kick off the largest-ever joint military drills in the archipelago nation next week, US officials said Tuesday, showing off their strong defence ties in the face of growing Chinese assertiveness.Nearly 9,000 Filipino and American soldiers will take part in the 12-day war games on the main island of Luzon, which are usually an annual affair but were cancelled or curbed during the pandemic.The exercises, which start on 28 March, will cover among o

Most countries are now trying to live with the coronavirus – so how long can China hold on to its "zero-COVID" goal?Striking A BalanceFor the last two years, China's strict measures to contain COVID, enforced by swift lockdowns and aggressive restrictions, seemed to be largely paying off.As the rest of the world grappled with surges in cases and deaths in 2020, China's President Xi Jinping declared the country's handling of the pandemic through lockdowns and widesprea

COVID-19 is again surging in Western Europe due to a "perfect storm" of governments lifting restrictions, waning immunity and the more contagious BA.2 Omicron subvariant, experts said Monday.After more than a month of falling cases across much of the continent, countries such as Britain, France, Germany and Italy have all seen a dramatic resurgence of infections in recent days.In France, cases have risen by more than a third in the week since the government ended most COVID restrict