Latest On Coronavirus

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 10th September, 2020) The death toll from the coronavirus infection in the world topped 898,000, over 27.6 million cases of infection were detected, and almost 18.6 million of those patients were cured, according to the US-based Johns Hopkins University, which tracks and compiles data from Federal and local authorities, media and other sources.

As of 19:30 GMT Wednesday, the number of cases globally is 27,628,190, including 898,757 fatalities.

The United States still has the highest case count in the world, with 6,334,158, including 189,972 fatalities and 2,359,111 recoveries.

AstraZeneca may resume clinical trials of its COVID-19 vaccine early next week, after suspending it as a precaution, the Financial Times reported Wednesday, citing "people familiar with the matter." The UK-Swedish company reportedly froze the trials after discovering that one participant was sick with transverse myelitis. This condition results in inflammation of parts of the spinal cord and may be caused by infections, among other things.

Safety is a top priority in vaccine clinical trials and temporary suspensions are not unusual, the World Health Organization (WHO) told Sputnik after AstraZeneca paused its clinical trials over an unexplained illness.

The Belarusian Health Ministry has joined the final stage of clinical trials of the Russian vaccine against COVID-19, Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko said.

The developers of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19 are ready to make it available for people all over the world, Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said.

The third phase of the post-registration clinical trials of the Russian vaccine against COVID-19 starts on Wednesday, Murashko said. Within just 10 days, Russia has gathered almost 31,000 volunteers wishing to take part in the post-registration trials of the vaccine against COVID-19, he said.

Israeli doctors have read the results of the phase 1 and 2 clinical trials of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine, and they are confident that it was created on a reliable platform and expect to take part in phase 3 testing, Polina Stepenskaya, chair of the Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cancer Immunotherapy Department at Jerusalem's Hadassah hospital, told Sputnik.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) said it had reached agreement on delivering 32 million doses of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19 to Mexico, and deliveries could start in November.

Russia and Venezuela are actively discussing the technical issues related to the launch of production of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against the coronavirus in the Latin American country, Russian Ambassador in Caracas Sergey Melik-Bagdasarov told Sputnik.

The vaccination of first Moscovites began on Wednesday as part of a post-registration study of a vaccine against coronavirus, Deputy Mayor for Social Development Anastasia Rakova told reporters.

Russia's Gamaleya Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology plans to create a combined vaccine that would protect against both flu and COVID-19, Alexander Gintsburg, the head of the institute, told Sputnik.

The European Commission on Wednesday announced concluding exploratory negotiations on purchasing a potential COVID-19 vaccine with the sixth partner � German biotechnological company BioNTech, which is cooperating with US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer.

US National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins told Congress that it was impossible to say if the United States would have a COVID-19 vaccine by the November presidential election, although he is cautiously optimistic one will emerge by year end.

A China-developed COVID-19 nasal spray vaccine has been approved for clinical trials, the Xinhua news agency reported, citing the University of Hong Kong (HKU).

The United States has altered its travel advisory for Mexico, Pakistan and other countries and is urging citizens to reconsider going there over mounting COVID-19 concerns, the US State Department announced.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed that a ban on social gatherings of more than six people would be re-imposed in England from Monday, as the UK recorded a further 2,659 coronavirus cases over the last 24 hours and another eight deaths.

The self-proclaimed Turkish Republic Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on Wednesday announced suspending inbound flights because of a recent increase of COVID-19 cases, the Daily Sabah newspaper reported.

The United Nations has not seen the anticipated drop in armed confrontations worldwide amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, but it witnessed some situations deteriorating on the ground instead, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo told the UN Security Council.

While greenhouse gas emissions dropped with the lockdowns worldwide to contain the novel coronavirus pandemic, greenhouse concentrations in the atmosphere reached yet another new record in 2020, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a press briefing.

The US Defense Department (DOD) response to the novel coronavirus pandemic led to an acceleration of the agency's Digital Modernization Strategy, with the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center shifting its focus from future warfare to locating and planning the distribution of badly needed medical supplies, Chief Information Officer Dana Deasy said in an interview.

Post-COVID economic recovery for Italy may take up to 15 years, as the country has suffered greatly from the pandemic, Ernesto Ferlenghi, the president of the Confindustria Russia association of Italian industrial enterprises, told Sputnik.

The China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in the city of Zhuhai has been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event's organizers said.

CNN reported, citing audio from prominent US journalist Bob Woodward's interview with the president for his upcoming book "Rage," that US President Donald Trump in February admitted to downplaying the deadly threat posed by COVID-19. CNN transcribed the recording - the actual audio clip has yet to be posted.

Trump did not intentionally mislead Americans on the dangers of COVID-19, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said.