france24--2020-12-31--Boris Johnson: Britain's 'cakeist' Brexit leader

As Brussels correspondent for the right-wing Daily Telegraph newspaper , Johnson made his name by writing `` Euro-myths '' -- exaggerated claims about the EU Boris Johnson is an unabashed believer in having his cake and eating it , and insists his big Brexit gamble has paid off as he leads Britain into life outside the European Union .
The UK prime minister 's brinkmanship led to a last-minute flurry of votes in a hastily reconvened parliament to push an EU trade agreement through on Wednesday , after both sides signed it in the hours before a fast-looming deadline .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ -- the end of a post-Brexit transition period .
Britain enters 2021 free of EU rules , although the rapidly deteriorating coronavirus pandemic hardly spells a happy New Year .
Nonetheless , Johnson was in celebratory mood as he fended off a BBC interviewer 's insistence that Britain now faces the kind of problematic trade-offs in its future relationship with Europe that he said all along could be ducked .
Critics had said `` you could n't have free trade with the EU unless you conformed with the EU 's laws ( and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and eating it '' , Johnson said .
`` That has turned out not to be true , '' the former journalist added .
`` I want you to see that this is a cakeist treaty . ''
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson was born in New York in 1964 , and his sister said as a child he wanted to be `` world king '' .
He spent part of his childhood in the EU capital , where his father Stanley worked for the European Commission , and later attended the elite @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at Oxford University .
In his biography `` Boris Johnson : The Gambler '' , released in October , journalist Tom Bower recounts the serial womanising that put paid to Johnson 's two marriages and his casual relationship with the truth .
Johnson is believed to have at least six children , including a seven-month-old baby with his fiancee Carrie Symonds , 32 .
But Stanley Johnson emerges most unsympathetically from the biography , with Bower relating how the young Boris witnessed domestic violence and suffered from emotional neglect as a child .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a journalist for The Times , where he was sacked for making up a quote , and moved on to become Brussels correspondent for the right-wing Daily Telegraph newspaper .
There he made his name by writing `` Euro-myths '' -- exaggerated claims about the EU such as purported plans to standardise the sizes of condoms and bananas .
Interviewed later by the BBC , Boris Johnson likened his reporting to `` chucking these rocks over the garden wall '' into Britain and observing its `` amazing explosive effect on the Tory party @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` rather weird sense of power '' , he said .
But his first few years in politics did not go smoothly -- in 2004 , he was sacked from the Conservatives ' shadow cabinet for lying about an extra-marital affair .
He rallied to become mayor of Labour-voting , staunchly pro-European London in 2008 , an achievement commentators put down to his brazen refusal to respect convention .
Johnson felt torn about which way to leap in Britain 's 2016 Brexit referendum , famously drawing up a list of pros and cons @ @ @ @ @ @ @ political charisma behind the `` leave '' campaign .
Johnson 's popularity , and propensity for exaggeration , helped swing the bitterly divisive campaign , and he intervened last year to end the subsequent political paralysis under Theresa May by seizing control of the Conservative party .
After winning a thumping election victory in December , he was diagnosed in March with Covid-19 and ended up in intensive care , crediting two immigrant nurses with helping to save his life .
The pandemic has claimed the lives of more than 72,500 other Britons @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of dodging hard choices after a long run of policy U-turns .
But on Brexit , he has stuck firmly to a hardline vision for Britain .
In 2018 , he quit his role as foreign secretary under May over her Brexit plan , which sought to keep Britain in the EU 's regulatory orbit as the price of economic stability .
When she resigned after failing three times to get her EU divorce deal through parliament , Johnson took over .
Within six months he had renegotiated the deal , won an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ EU .
`` Those who did not take him seriously were wrong , '' French President Emmanuel Macron said at the time .
But after promising to `` get Brexit done '' with an `` oven-ready deal '' , Johnson has found the process of extricating Britain fully out of the EU 's embrace during an 11-month transition period this year no easy sell .
The transition is finally over , and Britain will now learn whether Johnson 's `` cakeist '' wager that the country will `` prosper mightily '' outside the @ @ @ @ @ @

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Boris Johnson is an unabashed believer in having his cake and eating it, and insists his big Brexit gamble has paid off as he leads Britain into life outside the European Union.
The UK prime minister's brinkmanship led to a last-minute flurry of votes in a hastily reconvened parliament to push an EU trade agreement through on Wednesday, after both sides signed it in the hours before a fast-looming deadline.
That deadline was 2300 GMT on Thursday -- the end of a post-Brexit transition period.
Britain enters 2021 free of EU rules, although the rapidly deteriorating coronavirus pandemic hardly spells a happy New Year.
Nonetheless, Johnson was in celebratory mood as he fended off a BBC interviewer's insistence that Britain now faces the kind of problematic trade-offs in its future relationship with Europe that he said all along could be ducked.
Critics had said "you couldn't have free trade with the EU unless you conformed with the EU's laws (and) that that was having your cake and eating it", Johnson said.
"That has turned out not to be true," the former journalist added. "I want you to see that this is a cakeist treaty."
- 'World king' -
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson was born in New York in 1964, and his sister said as a child he wanted to be "world king".
He spent part of his childhood in the EU capital, where his father Stanley worked for the European Commission, and later attended the elite Eton school in England before studying Classics at Oxford University.
In his biography "Boris Johnson: The Gambler", released in October, journalist Tom Bower recounts the serial womanising that put paid to Johnson's two marriages and his casual relationship with the truth.
Johnson is believed to have at least six children, including a seven-month-old baby with his fiancee Carrie Symonds, 32.
But Stanley Johnson emerges most unsympathetically from the biography, with Bower relating how the young Boris witnessed domestic violence and suffered from emotional neglect as a child.
The future prime minister first worked as a journalist for The Times, where he was sacked for making up a quote, and moved on to become Brussels correspondent for the right-wing Daily Telegraph newspaper.
There he made his name by writing "Euro-myths" -- exaggerated claims about the EU such as purported plans to standardise the sizes of condoms and bananas.
Interviewed later by the BBC, Boris Johnson likened his reporting to "chucking these rocks over the garden wall" into Britain and observing its "amazing explosive effect on the Tory party".
The experience gave him a "rather weird sense of power", he said.
But his first few years in politics did not go smoothly -- in 2004, he was sacked from the Conservatives' shadow cabinet for lying about an extra-marital affair.
He rallied to become mayor of Labour-voting, staunchly pro-European London in 2008, an achievement commentators put down to his brazen refusal to respect convention.
- Brexit promises -
Johnson felt torn about which way to leap in Britain's 2016 Brexit referendum, famously drawing up a list of pros and cons for EU membership before throwing his considerable political charisma behind the "leave" campaign.
Johnson's popularity, and propensity for exaggeration, helped swing the bitterly divisive campaign, and he intervened last year to end the subsequent political paralysis under Theresa May by seizing control of the Conservative party.
After winning a thumping election victory in December, he was diagnosed in March with Covid-19 and ended up in intensive care, crediting two immigrant nurses with helping to save his life.
The pandemic has claimed the lives of more than 72,500 other Britons, however, and Johnson stands accused of dodging hard choices after a long run of policy U-turns.
But on Brexit, he has stuck firmly to a hardline vision for Britain.
In 2018, he quit his role as foreign secretary under May over her Brexit plan, which sought to keep Britain in the EU's regulatory orbit as the price of economic stability.
When she resigned after failing three times to get her EU divorce deal through parliament, Johnson took over. Within six months he had renegotiated the deal, won an election and taken Britain out of the EU.
"Those who did not take him seriously were wrong," French President Emmanuel Macron said at the time.
But after promising to "get Brexit done" with an "oven-ready deal", Johnson has found the process of extricating Britain fully out of the EU's embrace during an 11-month transition period this year no easy sell.
The transition is finally over, and Britain will now learn whether Johnson's "cakeist" wager that the country will "prosper mightily" outside the EU will indeed pay off.
© 2020 AFP


france24--2020-12-31--Sceptical Isle: Britain's story foreshadowed Brexit

After almost five decades in the community that has become the European Union , the United Kingdom left its the single market on December 31 In September 1946 , surveying the ruins of a continent ripped apart by war , Winston Churchill could see only one way to rebuild and preserve peace .
`` We must build a kind of United States of Europe , '' Britain 's victorious war time leader told an audience at Zurich University .
On December 31 , 2020 under Prime Minister Boris Johnson -- who once wrote a biography of Churchill -- Britain finally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Another 27 countries remain inside the EU , and several more are keen to join , but Britain has always been an awkward fit .
Does its island history explain why ?
Until around 6500 BCE , the rocky promontory that would become Great Britain was attached to the coast of mainland Europe by the low-lying wilderness of `` Doggerland '' .
As the Ice Age glaciers retreated , the hills and swamps were flooded and Doggerland became the bed of what is now the North Sea , and Britain stood alone .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and gathered there were now pushed back to either shore .
British and European history would remain closely entangled , but also now physically divided .
Celtic tribes from the mainland displaced or mixed with pre-historic Britons and some , like the Belgae and the Dumnonii , lived on both sides of the Channel .
Invasion by the Roman Empire bound the archipelago into the Classical world until the fifth century , then -- as the legions left -- Angles , Saxons , Jutes and Scots arrived .
Various generations of Norse and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Norman invasion of 1066 brought most of the island under a French-speaking monarchy .
With continental rulers , the influence of the Catholic church was consolidated , and for a while the kings of England held vast tracts of land in what would become modern France .
Under Henry VIII , England left the Roman church , putting the island on a collision course with the Catholic crowned heads of Europe .
In 1558 , the forces of Mary Tudor , Queen of England and Ireland , lost control of the port @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Britain 's history began to diverge from that of the mainland .
Elizabeth I defeated a Spanish invasion fleet in 1588 , and her kingdom turned its eyes to the sea , becoming a maritime power rather than continental one .
French historian Francois-Charles Mougel sees this as a `` 180-degree '' pivot that would set Great Britain apart from its neighbours , perhaps for good .
Ties with the mainland were not wholly cut .
The British royals intermarried with the great houses of Europe , trade often flourished and wars often @ @ @ @ @ @ @ -- after the British Empire had allied with smaller continental powers to defeat Napoleonic France -- London ruled a global domain .
In the first half of the 20th century Britain would again become embroiled in fighting on mainland Europe in two world wars .
Britain , while it had been bombed , had escaped invasion and avoided both Nazi tyranny and a Communist post-war takeover -- reinforcing its sense of splendid isolation .
`` There was a brief period after the Second World War when the Brits genuinely believed that we were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' said Anand Menon , professor of European Politics and Foreign Affairs at King 's College London .
Along with Britain 's dominions and colonies there was an alternative ally , as Churchill 's French wartime rival and comrade General Charles de Gaulle knew all too well : the United States .
With the Empire starting to break up , Britain fell back as much on a `` special relationship '' with Washington than it did on Europe .
France was also a shrinking empire in search of a role , and it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ emerging European Community .
In 1963 and 1967 , De Gaulle vetoed British requests to join the bloc , fearing a loss of influence for Paris to Britain , with its close ties to the US .
Britons would have to wait until 1973 , and the French presidency of George Pompidou , to join what was to become known later as the European Union .
`` One of the things the French made sure the European Union did before we joined was rigging its budgetary arrangements so they did n't work for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the think tank Britain in a Changing Europe , told AFP .
`` Part of that was to lock in a system with a view to the Brits joining , and within 18 months of us joining we were complaining about the budget rules . ''
But Britain 's sense of distance did not end there .
Although as an up-and-coming Conservative politician , Margaret Thatcher had been a convinced European , she soon clashed with Brussels .
While the core European countries were pushing for deeper political and legal union , Britain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ common market .
London championed the arrival of former Soviet-bloc members keen to taste the fruits of capitalism , and resisted regulatory integration .
Even the 1994 opening of the Channel Tunnel did not close the divide .
Thatcher was succeeded by the relatively europhile John Major , and he by Labour 's Tony Blair , who pledged to govern from the `` heart of Europe '' .
But London kept and expanded the opt outs that Thatcher had negotiated from core EU rules .
Britain received a rebate on its dues , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ most famously did not join the union 's most ambitious project : the euro .
Then in 2016 , faced with a tide of eurosceptic populism from his right flank , Prime Minister David Cameron tried to heal the Dogger Divide once and for all with a referendum on EU membership .
And , once again , Britain pivoted away from the continent .

Brussels (AFP) –
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In September 1946, surveying the ruins of a continent ripped apart by war, Winston Churchill could see only one way to rebuild and preserve peace.
"We must build a kind of United States of Europe," Britain's victorious war time leader told an audience at Zurich University.
On December 31, 2020 under Prime Minister Boris Johnson -- who once wrote a biography of Churchill -- Britain finally left the European Union's single market
Another 27 countries remain inside the EU, and several more are keen to join, but Britain has always been an awkward fit. Does its island history explain why?
- Parting of the waves -
Until around 6500 BCE, the rocky promontory that would become Great Britain was attached to the coast of mainland Europe by the low-lying wilderness of "Doggerland".
As the Ice Age glaciers retreated, the hills and swamps were flooded and Doggerland became the bed of what is now the North Sea, and Britain stood alone.
The Mesolithic humans who had once hunted and gathered there were now pushed back to either shore.
British and European history would remain closely entangled, but also now physically divided.
- Island of immigrants -
Celtic tribes from the mainland displaced or mixed with pre-historic Britons and some, like the Belgae and the Dumnonii, lived on both sides of the Channel.
Invasion by the Roman Empire bound the archipelago into the Classical world until the fifth century, then -- as the legions left -- Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Scots arrived.
Various generations of Norse and Danish vikings raided and settled, until the Norman invasion of 1066 brought most of the island under a French-speaking monarchy.
With continental rulers, the influence of the Catholic church was consolidated, and for a while the kings of England held vast tracts of land in what would become modern France.
- Turning point -
Under Henry VIII, England left the Roman church, putting the island on a collision course with the Catholic crowned heads of Europe.
In 1558, the forces of Mary Tudor, Queen of England and Ireland, lost control of the port of Calais to the French, and Britain's history began to diverge from that of the mainland.
Elizabeth I defeated a Spanish invasion fleet in 1588, and her kingdom turned its eyes to the sea, becoming a maritime power rather than continental one.
French historian Francois-Charles Mougel sees this as a "180-degree" pivot that would set Great Britain apart from its neighbours, perhaps for good.
Ties with the mainland were not wholly cut. The British royals intermarried with the great houses of Europe, trade often flourished and wars often erupted.
But by the 19th century -- after the British Empire had allied with smaller continental powers to defeat Napoleonic France -- London ruled a global domain.
- World at War -
In the first half of the 20th century Britain would again become embroiled in fighting on mainland Europe in two world wars.
Britain, while it had been bombed, had escaped invasion and avoided both Nazi tyranny and a Communist post-war takeover -- reinforcing its sense of splendid isolation.
"There was a brief period after the Second World War when the Brits genuinely believed that we were at the height of our powers," said Anand Menon, professor of European Politics and Foreign Affairs at King's College London.
Along with Britain's dominions and colonies there was an alternative ally, as Churchill's French wartime rival and comrade General Charles de Gaulle knew all too well: the United States.
With the Empire starting to break up, Britain fell back as much on a "special relationship" with Washington than it did on Europe.
- 'Le Non' -
France was also a shrinking empire in search of a role, and it thought it had found one in the emerging European Community.
In 1963 and 1967, De Gaulle vetoed British requests to join the bloc, fearing a loss of influence for Paris to Britain, with its close ties to the US.
Britons would have to wait until 1973, and the French presidency of George Pompidou, to join what was to become known later as the European Union.
"One of the things the French made sure the European Union did before we joined was rigging its budgetary arrangements so they didn't work for us," Menon, who founded the think tank Britain in a Changing Europe, told AFP.
"Part of that was to lock in a system with a view to the Brits joining, and within 18 months of us joining we were complaining about the budget rules."
- Europe a la carte -
But Britain's sense of distance did not end there. Although as an up-and-coming Conservative politician, Margaret Thatcher had been a convinced European, she soon clashed with Brussels.
While the core European countries were pushing for deeper political and legal union, Britain was pushing for a wider, looser common market.
London championed the arrival of former Soviet-bloc members keen to taste the fruits of capitalism, and resisted regulatory integration.
Even the 1994 opening of the Channel Tunnel did not close the divide.
Thatcher was succeeded by the relatively europhile John Major, and he by Labour's Tony Blair, who pledged to govern from the "heart of Europe".
But London kept and expanded the opt outs that Thatcher had negotiated from core EU rules.
Britain received a rebate on its dues, never joined the Schengen passport-free zone and most famously did not join the union's most ambitious project: the euro.
Then in 2016, faced with a tide of eurosceptic populism from his right flank, Prime Minister David Cameron tried to heal the Dogger Divide once and for all with a referendum on EU membership.
And, once again, Britain pivoted away from the continent.
© 2020 AFP


france24--2020-12-31--After EU, what's next for 'Global Britain'?

A brave new world or a dangerous leap into the unknown ?
After nearly 50 years of integration with Europe , Britain starts an uncertain new chapter on January 1 .
- What changes on January 1 ?
- Britain formally quit the European Union in January 2020 but has continued to observe all its rules during a transition period .
That half-way house ended at 2300 GMT on December 31 .
So from 2021 , it will stand on its own , for better or worse .
A new trade deal , agreed after months of hard-fought talks and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the path by lifting the prospect of tariffs and quotas for cross-Channel goods , from cars to lamb .
Without a deal , imports and exports would have faced serious disruption with the abrupt return of barriers that have not existed for decades .
There were fears that certain foodstuffs and medicines could run short .
Britain got a glimpse of what that might look like when France shut its borders to freight in response to the discovery of a new variant of the coronavirus .
But even with a deal , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ exporters will still need to file reams of new customs paperwork to prove their goods have authorisation to enter the EU 's single market .
Britain has urged business to be ready either way , but industry players say the government has failed to deliver vital IT systems and support staff in time , heightening the risk of trouble after January 1 .
Brexiteers argue the EU has held Britain back through onerous regulation and it can now embark on a buccaneering new mission to support free trade around the world .
That @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a great power and amounts to `` God 's diplomacy '' , according to a February speech by Prime Minister Boris Johnson .
But if heaven was listening , it had other plans in mind : a month after Johnson 's speech , Britain was forced into national lockdown by the coronavirus pandemic .
If the world ever gets back to normality , the idea is that Britain will not shrink inwards after Brexit but will look outwards , as far afield as a free-trade pact with Pacific Rim countries .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is time for the makers , the doers and the innovators to help us write our most exciting chapter yet , '' International Trade Secretary Liz Truss declared in October , touting UK exports of everything from clotted cream to robots .
Truss has already signed a post-Brexit trade deal with Canada , Japan , Singapore and Switzerland , among others .
It is also eyeing a deal with India , and negotiating others with the United States , Australia and New Zealand -- Britain 's partners in the `` Five Eyes '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deals in the pipeline will cover 80 percent of overseas trade by 2022 , according to the government , which has shaken up the Foreign Office to integrate aid and development into Britain 's diplomatic agenda .
- What about at home ?
- Johnson 's pitch to voters in last December 's general election was to `` get Brexit done '' and focus both money and attention on parts of the country that have failed to benefit from London 's finance-driven growth .
That `` levelling up '' agenda to bring new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ England has been all but side-tracked by the pandemic .
But the government insists its long-term goals remain in place and that membership dues sent to the EU will be better spent at home .
Some Brexiteers want a radical overhaul of Britain 's economic model , to turn the country into `` Singapore on Thames '' -- a lightly regulated , lightly taxed rival to supposedly sclerotic Europe .
Yet the government stresses that any free-trade deals wo n't sacrifice its `` red lines '' : the state-run National Health Service , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of those sacred cows could be carved up if the United States forces post-Brexit Britain to yield to the same kind of concessions on trade that the world 's most powerful economy has negotiated elsewhere .
With Joe Biden preparing to take office as US president , Johnson has already ceded some ground by agreeing to keep Northern Ireland largely in the EU 's regulatory orbit after January 1 , unlike the rest of the UK .

London (AFP) –
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A brave new world or a dangerous leap into the unknown? After nearly 50 years of integration with Europe, Britain starts an uncertain new chapter on January 1.
- What changes on January 1? -
Britain formally quit the European Union in January 2020 but has continued to observe all its rules during a transition period.
That half-way house ended at 2300 GMT on December 31. So from 2021, it will stand on its own, for better or worse.
A new trade deal, agreed after months of hard-fought talks and signed only this week, will smooth the path by lifting the prospect of tariffs and quotas for cross-Channel goods, from cars to lamb.
Without a deal, imports and exports would have faced serious disruption with the abrupt return of barriers that have not existed for decades.
There were fears that certain foodstuffs and medicines could run short.
Britain got a glimpse of what that might look like when France shut its borders to freight in response to the discovery of a new variant of the coronavirus.
But even with a deal, the future won't be seamless.
UK exporters will still need to file reams of new customs paperwork to prove their goods have authorisation to enter the EU's single market.
Britain has urged business to be ready either way, but industry players say the government has failed to deliver vital IT systems and support staff in time, heightening the risk of trouble after January 1.
- What is 'Global Britain'? -
Brexiteers argue the EU has held Britain back through onerous regulation and it can now embark on a buccaneering new mission to support free trade around the world.
That mission taps into Britain's seafaring roots as a great power and amounts to "God's diplomacy", according to a February speech by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
But if heaven was listening, it had other plans in mind: a month after Johnson's speech, Britain was forced into national lockdown by the coronavirus pandemic.
If the world ever gets back to normality, the idea is that Britain will not shrink inwards after Brexit but will look outwards, as far afield as a free-trade pact with Pacific Rim countries.
"Now Global Britain is back, it is time for the makers, the doers and the innovators to help us write our most exciting chapter yet," International Trade Secretary Liz Truss declared in October, touting UK exports of everything from clotted cream to robots.
Truss has already signed a post-Brexit trade deal with Canada, Japan, Singapore and Switzerland, among others.
It is also eyeing a deal with India, and negotiating others with the United States, Australia and New Zealand -- Britain's partners in the "Five Eyes" collective of English-speaking intelligence powers.
Further deals in the pipeline will cover 80 percent of overseas trade by 2022, according to the government, which has shaken up the Foreign Office to integrate aid and development into Britain's diplomatic agenda.
- What about at home? -
Johnson's pitch to voters in last December's general election was to "get Brexit done" and focus both money and attention on parts of the country that have failed to benefit from London's finance-driven growth.
That "levelling up" agenda to bring new investment such as high-speed rail to northern England has been all but side-tracked by the pandemic.
But the government insists its long-term goals remain in place and that membership dues sent to the EU will be better spent at home.
Some Brexiteers want a radical overhaul of Britain's economic model, to turn the country into "Singapore on Thames" -- a lightly regulated, lightly taxed rival to supposedly sclerotic Europe.
Yet the government stresses that any free-trade deals won't sacrifice its "red lines": the state-run National Health Service, food standards and UK farming.
All of those sacred cows could be carved up if the United States forces post-Brexit Britain to yield to the same kind of concessions on trade that the world's most powerful economy has negotiated elsewhere.
With Joe Biden preparing to take office as US president, Johnson has already ceded some ground by agreeing to keep Northern Ireland largely in the EU's regulatory orbit after January 1, unlike the rest of the UK.
© 2020 AFP


france24--2020-12-31--Brexit becomes reality as UK quits EU single market

Britain has always been something of an awkward fit in the EU Britain on Thursday finally severed its turbulent half-century partnership with Europe , quitting the EU single market and customs union and going its own way four-and-a-half years after its shock vote to leave the bloc .
Brexit , which has dominated politics on both sides of the Channel since 2016 , became a reality as Big Ben struck 11:00 pm ( 2300 GMT ) in London , just as most of mainland Europe ushered in 2021 .
Prime Minister Boris Johnson -- the figurehead of the `` Leave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` amazing moment '' for the country and played up his upbeat narrative of a `` Global Britain '' unshackled from rules set in Brussels .
He vowed that post-Brexit Britain , despite being battered by a surge in coronavirus cases , would be an `` open , generous , outward-looking , internationalist and free-trading '' country .
`` We have our freedom in our hands and it is up to us to make the most of it . ''
Legally , Britain left the European Union on January 31 but has been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ talks to secure a free-trade agreement with Brussels , which was finally clinched on Christmas Eve .
Now the transition is over , EU rules no longer apply .
The immediate consequence is an end to the free movement of more than 500 million people between Britain and the 27 EU states .
Customs border checks return for the first time in decades , and despite the free-trade deal , queues and disruption from additional paperwork are expected .
Matt Smith , managing director of HSF Logistics , which ships mainly fresh meat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , said he was sending around 15 truckloads to the EU on New Year 's Eve ahead of the changes .
The government 's new post-Brexit customs systems are largely untested and Smith was doubtful how his business would fare with the new paperwork .
`` We 're not too sure to be honest , it seems to be a bit of a headache , '' he told AFP .
`` There 'll be delays along the line at some stage . ''
Britain is the first member state to leave the EU @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unity after the horrors of World War II .
The 2016 referendum opened up abiding wounds between Leavers and Remainers , and ushered in years of political paralysis before Johnson took power last year , vowing to chart a future for Britain built on scientific innovation and new partnerships across the seas .
A parliamentary debate on Wednesday to ratify the trade deal was marked by elegiac farewells from pro-EU lawmakers , and warnings of disruption as Britain dismantles the intricate network of ties built since it joined the EU 's forerunner in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ averted potential business chaos in the immediate future , the divorce will play out in many practical ways .
Changes apply to everything from pet passports , to how long Britons can visit their holiday homes on the continent and an end to British involvement in a student exchange programme .
Potential disruption at ports is stoking fears of food and medicine shortages , as well as delays to holidaymakers and business travellers used to seamless travel in the EU .
British fishermen are disgruntled at a compromise to allow continued access for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ key financial services sector also faces an anxious wait to learn on what basis it can keep dealing with Europe , after being largely omitted from the trade agreement .
In a landmark deal sealed just hours before 2300 GMT , the tiny British territory of Gibraltar will become part of Europe 's passport-free zone to keep movement fluid on its border with Spain .
Northern Ireland 's border with EU member state Ireland will be closely watched to ensure movement is unrestricted -- a key plank of a 1998 peace deal that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rule .
And in pro-EU Scotland , where Brexit has given a boost to calls for a new vote on independence , Johnson faces a potential constitutional headache as 2021 dawns .
But opinion polls indicate that most Britons , on both sides of the referendum divide , want to move on and are far more worried about the worsening coronavirus pandemic , which has hit the country harder than most .
Johnson , who himself was among those who was struck down by the virus , warned of tough times ahead because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said a UK-developed vaccine offered grounds for hope .
- 'Be our own bosses ' - '' It 's going to be better , '' said Maureen Martin , from the port of Dover that lies across the Channel from France .
`` We need to govern ourselves and be our own bosses . ''
Britain is a financial and diplomatic big-hitter and a major NATO power with a permanent seat on the UN Security Council and in the G7 grouping of the world 's richest economies .
The EU has now lost @ @ @ @ @ @ @ $ 2.85 trillion , and there is regret that Britain wanted out .
French President Emmanuel Macron said Britain will remain `` our friend and ally '' but lamented that Brexit was the fruit of `` a lot of lies and false promises '' .
`` No one has been able to show me the added value of Brexit , '' added EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier .
`` It 's a divorce ... you ca n't celebrate a divorce . ''
Boarding a Eurostar train in Paris as the Brexit hour approached @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he was going to pack up his life in London and return to live in France .
`` It breaks my heart , '' he said .
In Britain , Brexit has been the culmination of years of anti-Brussels agitation as the union morphed from a trading community to a more ambitious political project .
However , the 2016 referendum never spelt out what shape Brexit should take .
Johnson 's predecessor Theresa May repeatedly failed to drive through a `` soft '' separation that would have kept Britain largely bound to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ harder bargain , to the profound unease of UK businesses and opposition parties .
Now after months of stormy negotiations that were repeatedly upended by the pandemic , Brussels , too , is keen to move on .
But UK lawmaker Chris Hazzard , from the Irish republican Sinn Fein party , said Brexit was far from over .
`` When all the bluster dies down ... it will become depressingly clear that this trade deal is ... the beginning of a new trading relationship built on permanent negotiation , disputes and recriminations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Telegraph , where Johnson made his name as a Brussels-bashing Europe correspondent , said the government faced a new reality shorn of the EU bogeyman .

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Britain on Thursday finally severed its turbulent half-century partnership with Europe, quitting the EU single market and customs union and going its own way four-and-a-half years after its shock vote to leave the bloc.
Brexit, which has dominated politics on both sides of the Channel since 2016, became a reality as Big Ben struck 11:00 pm (2300 GMT) in London, just as most of mainland Europe ushered in 2021.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson -- the figurehead of the "Leave" campaign -- described it as an "amazing moment" for the country and played up his upbeat narrative of a "Global Britain" unshackled from rules set in Brussels.
He vowed that post-Brexit Britain, despite being battered by a surge in coronavirus cases, would be an "open, generous, outward-looking, internationalist and free-trading" country.
"We have our freedom in our hands and it is up to us to make the most of it."
Legally, Britain left the European Union on January 31 but has been in a standstill transition period during fractious talks to secure a free-trade agreement with Brussels, which was finally clinched on Christmas Eve.
Now the transition is over, EU rules no longer apply. The immediate consequence is an end to the free movement of more than 500 million people between Britain and the 27 EU states.
Customs border checks return for the first time in decades, and despite the free-trade deal, queues and disruption from additional paperwork are expected.
- 'A bit of a headache' -
Matt Smith, managing director of HSF Logistics, which ships mainly fresh meat and chilled goods between Britain and Europe, said he was sending around 15 truckloads to the EU on New Year's Eve ahead of the changes.
The government's new post-Brexit customs systems are largely untested and Smith was doubtful how his business would fare with the new paperwork.
"We're not too sure to be honest, it seems to be a bit of a headache," he told AFP. "There'll be delays along the line at some stage."
Britain is the first member state to leave the EU, which was set up to forge unity after the horrors of World War II.
The 2016 referendum opened up abiding wounds between Leavers and Remainers, and ushered in years of political paralysis before Johnson took power last year, vowing to chart a future for Britain built on scientific innovation and new partnerships across the seas.
A parliamentary debate on Wednesday to ratify the trade deal was marked by elegiac farewells from pro-EU lawmakers, and warnings of disruption as Britain dismantles the intricate network of ties built since it joined the EU's forerunner in 1973.
- Fish and finances -
While the EU trade deal averted potential business chaos in the immediate future, the divorce will play out in many practical ways.
Changes apply to everything from pet passports, to how long Britons can visit their holiday homes on the continent and an end to British involvement in a student exchange programme.
Potential disruption at ports is stoking fears of food and medicine shortages, as well as delays to holidaymakers and business travellers used to seamless travel in the EU.
British fishermen are disgruntled at a compromise to allow continued access for EU boats in British waters.
The key financial services sector also faces an anxious wait to learn on what basis it can keep dealing with Europe, after being largely omitted from the trade agreement.
In a landmark deal sealed just hours before 2300 GMT, the tiny British territory of Gibraltar will become part of Europe's passport-free zone to keep movement fluid on its border with Spain.
Northern Ireland's border with EU member state Ireland will be closely watched to ensure movement is unrestricted -- a key plank of a 1998 peace deal that ended 30 years of violence over British rule.
And in pro-EU Scotland, where Brexit has given a boost to calls for a new vote on independence, Johnson faces a potential constitutional headache as 2021 dawns.
But opinion polls indicate that most Britons, on both sides of the referendum divide, want to move on and are far more worried about the worsening coronavirus pandemic, which has hit the country harder than most.
Johnson, who himself was among those who was struck down by the virus, warned of tough times ahead because of a resurgence of Covid-19 infections but said a UK-developed vaccine offered grounds for hope.
- 'Be our own bosses' -
"It's going to be better," said Maureen Martin, from the port of Dover that lies across the Channel from France. "We need to govern ourselves and be our own bosses."
Britain is a financial and diplomatic big-hitter and a major NATO power with a permanent seat on the UN Security Council and in the G7 grouping of the world's richest economies.
The EU has now lost 66 million people and an economy worth $2.85 trillion, and there is regret that Britain wanted out.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Britain will remain "our friend and ally" but lamented that Brexit was the fruit of "a lot of lies and false promises".
"No one has been able to show me the added value of Brexit," added EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier. "It's a divorce... you can't celebrate a divorce."
Boarding a Eurostar train in Paris as the Brexit hour approached, Francois Graffin, 59, said he was going to pack up his life in London and return to live in France.
"It breaks my heart," he said.
- Can't blame the EU -
In Britain, Brexit has been the culmination of years of anti-Brussels agitation as the union morphed from a trading community to a more ambitious political project.
However, the 2016 referendum never spelt out what shape Brexit should take.
Johnson's predecessor Theresa May repeatedly failed to drive through a "soft" separation that would have kept Britain largely bound to the EU.
But he drove a much harder bargain, to the profound unease of UK businesses and opposition parties.
Now after months of stormy negotiations that were repeatedly upended by the pandemic, Brussels, too, is keen to move on.
But UK lawmaker Chris Hazzard, from the Irish republican Sinn Fein party, said Brexit was far from over.
"When all the bluster dies down... it will become depressingly clear that this trade deal is... the beginning of a new trading relationship built on permanent negotiation, disputes and recriminations," he warned.
The Daily Telegraph, where Johnson made his name as a Brussels-bashing Europe correspondent, said the government faced a new reality shorn of the EU bogeyman.
burs-jit/phz/txw
© 2020 AFP


france24--2020-12-31--UN, African Union peacekeeping mission in Sudan's Darfur ends

FILE PHOTO : A peacekeeper from the United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur ( UNAMID ) escorts an internally displaced Sudanese woman carrying firewood on her head as she walks within the Kalma camp for internally displaced persons ( IDPs ) in Darfur , Sudan April 25 , 2019 .
The United Nations and African Union on Thursday ended a 13-year mission to keep the peace in the vast Sudanese region of Darfur , even as recent violent clashes leave residents fearful of renewed fighting .
Fighting erupted in Darfur in 2003 , when ethnic minority rebels rose up against @ @ @ @ @ @ @ responded by recruiting and arming notorious Arab-dominated militia known as the Janjaweed .
A total of 300,000 people were killed and 2.5 million displaced , according to the United Nations .
`` The peacekeeping mission ended on Thursday December 31 at midnight in Darfur , '' UNAMID 's spokesman Ashraf Eissa said .
`` As of 1 January 2021 , UNAMID 's troops and police personnel will focus on providing security for the mission 's drawdown activities , personnel , and assets . ''
He said the phased withdrawal of the mission 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be completed inside six months .
The Sudanese government `` will take over responsibility for the protection of civilians in the area , '' UNAMID said .
Darfur 's bitter conflict has largely subsided in recent years and longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir -- wanted by the International Criminal Court for genocide and other alleged crimes in the western region -- was deposed last year .
But the country 's transitional government is fragile , and ethnic and tribal clashes still periodically flare , including clashes last week that left at least 15 people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many of whom remain in camps years after they fled their homes , have held protests in recent weeks against the mission 's imminent departure .
`` The lives of Darfuri people are at stake , and the United Nations should reconsider its decision , '' Mohamed Abdelrahman told AFP on Wednesday at Kalma camp in Nyala , the capital of South Darfur .
He is among hundreds who staged a sit-in outside the mission 's headquarters at the camp .
Protesters held up banners reading : `` We trust UN protection for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' and `` we reject UNAMID 's exit . ''
Longtime Kalma resident Othman Abulkassem fears the troops ' departure signals `` big trouble '' for Darfuris , leaving them at risk of further violence .
`` We understand the concerns of the Darfuri population especially IDPs and other vulnerable groups , but the situation has improved a great deal over the past few years , '' Eissa told AFP .
`` The responsibility now lies with the transitional government and the Sudanese people themselves to enhance peace and security in Darfur .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan ( UNITAMS ) -- will be installed in Darfur after UNAMID 's departure .
It will be tasked with assisting Sudan 's transition , peace-building , and aid disbursement .
Following last week 's clashes , Sudanese authorities said government troops will be deployed to the region to contain any violence .
On Thursday , acting foreign minister Omar Qamareddine said UNAMID `` contributed to acheiving peace . ''
`` It 's true that its tenure was marred by some obstacles but it was , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told a Khartoum press conference , adding that the deployment of government troops across the region will be completed by March .
But many are sceptical .
`` If the protection of internally displaced people is assigned to the government forces , it will be like handing Darfuris to the forces that committed massacres and rape against them , '' said 25-year-old Darfuri Intisar Abdelhay .
Thousands of Janjaweed militiamen were incorporated into Sudan 's powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces , whose head Mohamed Hamdan Daglo is a key figure in the transitional @ @ @ @ @ @ @ human rights groups of carrying out widespread killings and rapes as part of a broader campaign of `` ethnic cleasing '' in the early years of the conflict .
Bashir was deposed by the army in April last year following unprecedented mass protests against his iron-fisted rule .
In August 2019 , the military rulers who ousted him agreed a precarious power sharing transition with civilians .
The transition government has pushed to build peace with rebel groups in all three of Sudan 's main conflict zones , including Darfur .
But two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , including the Sudan Liberation Movement ( SLM ) faction led by Abdelwahid Nour , which is believed to maintain considerable support in Darfur .
Clashes still flare in the region over land and access to water , mainly pitting nomadic Arab pastoralists against settled farmers from non-Arab ethnic groups .
`` There is not yet full and comprehensive peace in Sudan , '' said Kalma resident Mohamed Hassan .
`` And until there is , we are against the end of the UNAMID mission . ''

The United Nations and African Union on Thursday ended a 13-year mission to keep the peace in the vast Sudanese region of Darfur, even as recent violent clashes leave residents fearful of renewed fighting.
FILE PHOTO: A peacekeeper from the United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) escorts an internally displaced Sudanese woman carrying firewood on her head as she walks within the Kalma camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Darfur, Sudan April 25, 2019.
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Fighting erupted in Darfur in 2003, when ethnic minority rebels rose up against the Arab-dominated government in Khartoum, which responded by recruiting and arming notorious Arab-dominated militia known as the Janjaweed.
A total of 300,000 people were killed and 2.5 million displaced, according to the United Nations.
"The peacekeeping mission ended on Thursday December 31 at midnight in Darfur," UNAMID's spokesman Ashraf Eissa said.
"As of 1 January 2021, UNAMID's troops and police personnel will focus on providing security for the mission's drawdown activities, personnel, and assets."
He said the phased withdrawal of the mission's approximately 8,000 armed and civilian personnel will be completed inside six months.
The Sudanese government "will take over responsibility for the protection of civilians in the area," UNAMID said.
Darfur's bitter conflict has largely subsided in recent years and longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir -- wanted by the International Criminal Court for genocide and other alleged crimes in the western region -- was deposed last year.
But the country's transitional government is fragile, and ethnic and tribal clashes still periodically flare, including clashes last week that left at least 15 people dead and dozens wounded.
Darfuris, many of whom remain in camps years after they fled their homes, have held protests in recent weeks against the mission's imminent departure.
"The lives of Darfuri people are at stake, and the United Nations should reconsider its decision," Mohamed Abdelrahman told AFP on Wednesday at Kalma camp in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur.
He is among hundreds who staged a sit-in outside the mission's headquarters at the camp.
'Big trouble' ahead
Protesters held up banners reading: "We trust UN protection for IDPs (internally displaced people)," and "we reject UNAMID's exit."
Longtime Kalma resident Othman Abulkassem fears the troops' departure signals "big trouble" for Darfuris, leaving them at risk of further violence.
UNAMID spokesman Ashraf Eissa sought to allay those fears.
"We understand the concerns of the Darfuri population especially IDPs and other vulnerable groups, but the situation has improved a great deal over the past few years," Eissa told AFP.
"The responsibility now lies with the transitional government and the Sudanese people themselves to enhance peace and security in Darfur."
A UN political mission -- the United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS) -- will be installed in Darfur after UNAMID's departure.
It will be tasked with assisting Sudan's transition, peace-building, and aid disbursement.
Following last week's clashes, Sudanese authorities said government troops will be deployed to the region to contain any violence.
On Thursday, acting foreign minister Omar Qamareddine said UNAMID "contributed to acheiving peace."
"It's true that its tenure was marred by some obstacles but it was, overall, good," the minister told a Khartoum press conference, adding that the deployment of government troops across the region will be completed by March.
But many are sceptical.
"If the protection of internally displaced people is assigned to the government forces, it will be like handing Darfuris to the forces that committed massacres and rape against them," said 25-year-old Darfuri Intisar Abdelhay.
Thousands of Janjaweed militiamen were incorporated into Sudan's powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, whose head Mohamed Hamdan Daglo is a key figure in the transitional government.
The Janjaweed stand accused by human rights groups of carrying out widespread killings and rapes as part of a broader campaign of "ethnic cleasing" in the early years of the conflict.
'No peace yet'
Bashir was deposed by the army in April last year following unprecedented mass protests against his iron-fisted rule.
In August 2019, the military rulers who ousted him agreed a precarious power sharing transition with civilians.
The transition government has pushed to build peace with rebel groups in all three of Sudan's main conflict zones, including Darfur.
But two rebel groups refused to join the deal, including the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) faction led by Abdelwahid Nour, which is believed to maintain considerable support in Darfur.
Clashes still flare in the region over land and access to water, mainly pitting nomadic Arab pastoralists against settled farmers from non-Arab ethnic groups.
"There is not yet full and comprehensive peace in Sudan," said Kalma resident Mohamed Hassan.
"And until there is, we are against the end of the UNAMID mission."
(AFP)
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france24--2020-12-31--The Brexit rollercoaster: A timeline of Britain’s EU divorce

The front pages of the UK daily newspapers reporting on March 29 , 2017 , the day Prime Minister Theresa May formally triggered the process leading to Britain 's exit from the EU .
After more than four years of gruelling negotiations , parliamentary tussles and last-minute cliffhangers , the United Kingdom 's last EU ties will be severed on December 31 when the post-Brexit transition comes to an end .
The UK officially left the European Union at the end of January 2020 , but the transition period has kept most existing arrangements in place .
Once this expires @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Britons .
After multiple extensions , the two sides struck an 11th-hour deal on post-Brexit trade on December 24 , dispelling fears of an economically damaging `` no deal '' .
From David Cameron 's fateful referendum promise to Boris Johnson 's Christmas Eve victory speech , we take a look at the many twists and turns on the long and winding road to Brexit .
January 23 , 2013 : Prime Minister David Cameron says he is in favour of an in/out referendum on the UK 's membership of the EU @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in his Conservative Party .
The move is widely seen as a tactical ploy to stem the rise of the Eurosceptic UK Independence Party ( UKIP ) and close a gap in the polls with the opposition Labour Party .
September 18 , 2014 : Scottish voters decide by a majority of 55 percent to remain part of the UK in a referendum on independence , but Cameron ’ s government is criticised for its lacklustre performance during a divisive campaign .
Months earlier , Nigel Farage ’ s UKIP , which wants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , wins a record 26 percent of the vote in European elections and becomes the UK 's largest party in the European Parliament .
May 7 , 2015 : The Conservatives win a general election , claiming enough seats to rule without their pro-European coalition partners , the Liberal Democrats .
Cameron confirms he will hold a referendum on whether to leave the EU after more than four decades of a troubled membership .
February 20 , 2016 : After negotiations with EU leaders , Cameron says he has secured concessions that will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ within the union .
He confirms that he will campaign for Britain to remain in the 28-nation bloc in a simple in/out referendum set for June .
But he suffers a major blow when one of his closest Conservative allies , London Mayor Boris Johnson , says he will campaign for Brexit – giving the “ Leave ” campaign its most high-profile figurehead .
June 16 , 2016 : A bitter campaign comes to a dramatic conclusion with the murder of Labour MP and “ Remain ” campaigner Jo Cox , one week @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extremist Thomas Mair , shouted “ Britain First ” before killing the mother of two .
June 23 , 2016 : In a surprise result , Britain votes by 51.9 percent to 48.1 percent to exit the EU , sending shockwaves across global markets .
Farage hails June 23 as Britain ’ s “ Independence Day ” .
Cameron resigns the next morning , saying the country needs “ fresh leadership ” .
July 13 , 2016 : Theresa May , seen as a moderate “ Remainer ” , becomes prime minister after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Leave ” campaigners , including Boris Johnson , appear to scupper each other ’ s bids .
May appoints “ Leavers ” in all Brexit-related cabinet positions , giving Johnson the foreign ministry .
October 2 , 2016 : Having stated that “ Brexit means Brexit ” , May says Britain will begin the formal process of leaving the EU by the end of March 2017 .
This involves triggering Article 50 of the EU ’ s Lisbon Treaty .
The pound tumbles after May suggests she will go for a “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only way to end the free movement of people between the UK and the EU .
November 4 , 2016 : May ’ s timetable is thrown into doubt when English High Court judges rule that the government needs parliamentary approval before it can trigger Article 50 .
The Eurosceptic tabloid press lashes out at the judges , describing them as “ enemies of the people ” .
• ‘ No deal is better than a bad deal ’ January 17 , 2017 : May sets out her views on Brexit in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ place where Margaret Thatcher announced her support for the Single European Market 29 years earlier .
The prime minister says Britain will leave the single market and will reject any deal that leaves it “ half in , half out ” .
She adds : “ No deal is better than a bad deal.
” January 24 , 2017 : After a challenge by the government , the Supreme Court upholds the earlier ruling by the High Court judges , giving parliament – where a majority of MPs oppose Brexit – a chance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 13 , 2017 : Parliament approves a bill giving the government the authority to invoke Article 50 , with the opposition Labour Party , led by the Eurosceptic Jeremy Corbyn , telling its MPs to respect the result of the referendum .
In response to the vote , Scotland ’ s pro-EU first minister , Nicola Sturgeon , says she plans to have a second referendum on Scottish independence , stressing that most Scottish voters want to remain part of the EU .
March 29 , 2017 : May sends a letter to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ starts the clock on the process of the UK leaving the EU .
The move gives Britain and the EU two years to negotiate the terms of their divorce .
EU leaders respond two days later with a roadmap setting out their conditions .
They include the UK honouring its commitments to the EU through a financial settlement ( estimated at some €40 billion ) , granting EU citizens in Britain a residency permit , and ensuring there is no physical border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland .
Britain had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ remaining member states being divided and ill-prepared , but it is soon apparent that the opposite is true .
June 8 , 2017 : Weeks after calling a surprise general election to strengthen her hand , May sees her move backfire spectacularly as the Conservatives lose their majority in parliament .
Northern Ireland 's Democratic Unionist Party ( DUP ) , which supports a “ hard ” Brexit , makes a deal with the Conservatives , allowing May to stay in power .
But her wafer-thin majority means the already tortuous path to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ June 26 , 2017 : Formal negotiations on withdrawal begin between a weakened UK government and the EU , with a thick fog covering the road to Brexit .
December 13 , 2017 : Rebel Conservative MPs side with the opposition , forcing the government to guarantee a vote in parliament on the final Brexit deal , when it has been struck with Brussels .
December 15 , 2017 : The EU agrees to move on to the second phase of negotiations after a preliminary agreement is reached on the Brexit “ divorce @ @ @ @ @ @ @ EU citizens ’ rights .
May agrees in principle to a so-called “ backstop ” – a safety net ensuring there is no return to physical border checks in Ireland , whatever the outcome of trade talks between the UK and the EU .
March 19 , 2018 : The UK and EU make decisive steps in negotiations .
Agreements include dates for a transitional period designed to ensure “ an orderly withdrawal ” from the bloc .
But EU negotiators warn that there are issues still to be sorted out , most @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 7 , 2018 : After months of a power struggle between “ hard ” and “ soft ” Brexiters within the government , May announces she has united her cabinet behind a compromise deal , dubbed the “ Chequers ” plan , which would leave Britain in a close relationship with the EU .
But the plan is too soft for some , prompting May ’ s chief Brexit negotiator David Davis to resign two days later , soon followed by Johnson .
July 19 , 2018 : The EU Commission publishes a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for a “ no-deal ” Brexit .
Days later , the governor of the Bank of England , Mark Carney , says the risk of Britain leaving the EU without an agreement is “ uncomfortably high ” .
September 19-20 , 2018 : May ’ s position at home is further weakened when her Chequers plan is rebuffed at an informal summit in Salzburg , with EU leaders dismissing her proposals as unacceptable .
October 20 , 2018 : Hundreds of thousands of pro-EU protesters march in London calling for a second referendum @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would win .
Organisers say 700,000 people attend the event , making it the country ’ s largest rally since huge protests in 2003 against the war in Iraq .
November 13 , 2018 : The UK government says it has finally reached a deal with Brussels .
Citing opposition to the Northern Ireland backstop , another four ministers resign from May ’ s cabinet two days later , including Brexit minister Dominic Raab .
They say the backstop will threaten the UK ’ s territorial integrity .
November 25 , 2018 : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extraordinary summit in Brussels .
The next day , May says the UK parliament will have its say in a vote on December 11 .
December 10 , 2018 : Facing a crushing defeat in parliament , May postpones the vote on the Brexit deal and says she is heading to Brussels to secure further guarantees on the Northern Ireland question .
She is promptly rebuffed by EU leaders , who say there is no scope to renegotiate the deal .
Sensing an opportunity , Brexit hardliners in the Conservative Party seek to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ days later .
But she survives .
December 13-14 , 2018 : Back in Brussels , May fails to wrest further concessions from EU leaders wearied by months of gruelling and chaotic negotiations .
Donald Tusk , the European Council president , stresses that the backstop is intended as an insurance policy that would be replaced in time by a comprehensive trade deal .
January 15 , 2019 : May suffers a crushing defeat in parliament , where her Brexit deal is rejected by an overwhelming margin of 230 votes – the largest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Labour 's Corbyn calls a no-confidence vote for the next day , but May survives – again – as Tory MPs who shunned her Brexit plan this time rally behind the PM .
January 29 , 2019 : Just a fortnight after her humiliating defeat , May bounces back with a series of victorious votes in parliament .
MPs notably reject amendments that would have delayed the UK 's withdrawal and made a no-deal Brexit impossible .
A narrow majority also say they will back May 's deal if “ alternative arrangements @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , giving the prime minister a mandate to restart negotiations with the EU .
Brussels , however , says the Irish backstop is `` part and parcel '' of the Brexit deal and will not be renegotiated .
March 12 , 2019 : May ’ s withdrawal agreement is again rejected by the House of Commons – this time by a margin of 149 votes – after the UK ’ s attorney general , Geoffrey Cox , says minor concessions secured by the PM on the Irish border question will not prevent Britain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
March 14 , 2019 : Parliament votes overwhelmingly to seek a delay in Britain 's EU exit , beyond the March 29 deadline – which would require the approval of all 27 other EU members .
March 29 , 2019 : The UK is set to leave the EU , with or without a deal , unless both sides agree to delay Brexit , or Britain chooses to cancel it altogether .
March 14 , 2019 : Parliament votes overwhelmingly to seek a delay in Britain 's EU exit , beyond the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the approval of all 27 other EU members .
Days later , MPs force May to seek an extension until June 30 , but EU leaders offer her two alternatives : May 22 if the deal is passed , April 13 if not .
March 29 , 2019 : MPs reject the withdrawal agreement for a third time but are unable to find a majority for any alternative , including a second referendum .
Two weeks later , May has no other option but to seek yet another delay in Brussels .
EU @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extension until October 31 , with the possibility of Britain leaving earlier if parliament passes the deal .
May 23-24 , 2019 : Britain has to take part in European elections , having failed to exit the union .
They result in a big win for Farage ’ s Ukip and a crushing defeat for the Conservatives and Labour .
The day after the vote , May announces she will step down on June 7 .
July 23-24 , 2019 : Boris Johnson takes over at Number 10 after winning the Tory leadership @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Parliament is prorogued for five weeks at Johnson ’ s request , sparking fears the PM plans to by-pass MPs and force a no-deal Brexit .
September 3 , 2019 : 21 rebel Tory MPs are expelled from the party after voting against the government ’ s plans to leave on October 31 with or without a deal .
Two days later , Johnson says he would “ rather be dead in a ditch ” than ask for another extension .
September 9 , 2019 : The so-called “ Benn Bill ” comes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the EU impossible without parliament ’ s approval .
At the end of the month , the Supreme Court rules that the suspension of parliament was unlawful .
October 17 , 2019 : After weeks of acrimony , UK and EU officials suddenly announce they have reached a new deal that replaces the Irish backstop following major concessions by Johnson ’ s government .
However , MPs withhold their approval until laws implementing Brexit are in place , effectively forcing Johnson to seek another extension .
October 28 , 2019 : EU @ @ @ @ @ @ @ flextension ” , until January 31 .
It will be the last .
December 12 , 2019 : After campaigning on a promise to “ Get Brexit Done ” , Johnson ’ s Conservatives secure a decisive victory in a snap general election , gaining a massive 80-seat majority in parliament .
The result all but stamps out Remainers ’ last hopes of halting Brexit .
January 23 , 2020 : The withdrawal agreement eases through parliament and becomes law .
Six days later , European lawmakers give their approval to the deal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ UK formally leaves the European Union at the stroke of midnight , becoming the first member state to do so .
An 11-month transition period begins the next day , during which Britain is still bound by EU rules .
March 2 , 2020 : The two sides begin marathon talks on the future UK-EU relationship , which Johnson promises to wrap up by December .
However , progress is delayed by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic .
July 1 , 2020 : The UK government allows a deadline to seek an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lack of progress on a host of thorny issues , including fishing rights in UK waters .
September 9 , 2020 : EU leaders launch legal action after the UK government publishes a highly controversial bill to rewrite parts of the withdrawal agreement it signed in January .
Brussels says the British move `` seriously damages trust '' .
October 16 , 2020 : Johnson warns that Britain must “ get ready '' for the prospect of no-deal Brexit and “ go for the Australia solution ” on trade issues , a day @ @ @ @ @ @ @ London must back down in a row over fishing rights .
November 26 , 2020 : The UK ’ s Office for Budget Responsibility ( OBR ) predicts that a no-deal Brexit would strike a devastating blow to parts of the UK economy and result in hundreds of thousands of job losses .
December 18 , 2020 : Negotiators miss one of several self-imposed deadlines to reach a deal , owing to continued disagreements on fishing rights and the so-called level-playing field , a set of common rules designed to guarantee open and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deadline for December 20 , which is also missed .
December 24 , 2020 : After days of round-the-clock talks , the two sides finally strike a trade deal on Christmas Eve .
`` We 've taken back control of our laws and our destiny , ” says a jubilant Johnson , hailing the deal as his “ present ” to the nation .
`` Parting is such sweet sorrow . ''
adds a more measured Ursula von der Leyen , the EU Commission president .
“ It is time to leave Brexit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ EU chiefs Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel , the heads of the European Commission and European Council , smiled at a brief televised ceremony to put their names to the 1,246-page Trade and Cooperation Agreement .
The document was then flown by Britain 's Royal Air Force to London for Johnson to add his signature .
The UK 's lower House of Commons also voted overwhelmingly by 521-73 to back it .

BREXIT
After more than four years of gruelling negotiations, parliamentary tussles and last-minute cliffhangers, the United Kingdom's last EU ties will be severed on December 31 when the post-Brexit transition comes to an end.
The front pages of the UK daily newspapers reporting on March 29, 2017, the day Prime Minister Theresa May formally triggered the process leading to Britain's exit from the EU.
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The UK officially left the European Union at the end of January 2020, but the transition period has kept most existing arrangements in place. Once this expires, EU rules will cease to apply to Britons.
After multiple extensions, the two sides struck an 11th-hour deal on post-Brexit trade on December 24, dispelling fears of an economically damaging "no deal".
From David Cameron's fateful referendum promise to Boris Johnson's Christmas Eve victory speech, we take a look at the many twists and turns on the long and winding road to Brexit.
Cameron’s gamble
January 23, 2013: Prime Minister David Cameron says he is in favour of an in/out referendum on the UK's membership of the EU, bowing to pressure from Eurosceptic MPs in his Conservative Party. The move is widely seen as a tactical ploy to stem the rise of the Eurosceptic UK Independence Party (UKIP) and close a gap in the polls with the opposition Labour Party.
September 18, 2014: Scottish voters decide by a majority of 55 percent to remain part of the UK in a referendum on independence, but Cameron’s government is criticised for its lacklustre performance during a divisive campaign. Months earlier, Nigel Farage’s UKIP, which wants to pulls Britain out of the EU, wins a record 26 percent of the vote in European elections and becomes the UK's largest party in the European Parliament.
May 7, 2015: The Conservatives win a general election, claiming enough seats to rule without their pro-European coalition partners, the Liberal Democrats. Cameron confirms he will hold a referendum on whether to leave the EU after more than four decades of a troubled membership.
February 20, 2016: After negotiations with EU leaders, Cameron says he has secured concessions that will give Britain a “special status” within the union. He confirms that he will campaign for Britain to remain in the 28-nation bloc in a simple in/out referendum set for June. But he suffers a major blow when one of his closest Conservative allies, London Mayor Boris Johnson, says he will campaign for Brexit – giving the “Leave” campaign its most high-profile figurehead.
June 16, 2016: A bitter campaign comes to a dramatic conclusion with the murder of Labour MP and “Remain” campaigner Jo Cox, one week before the referendum. The murderer, extremist Thomas Mair, shouted “Britain First” before killing the mother of two.
‘Independence Day’
June 23, 2016: In a surprise result, Britain votes by 51.9 percent to 48.1 percent to exit the EU, sending shockwaves across global markets. Farage hails June 23 as Britain’s “Independence Day”. Cameron resigns the next morning, saying the country needs “fresh leadership”.
July 13, 2016: Theresa May, seen as a moderate “Remainer”, becomes prime minister after a Conservative leadership contest in which prominent “Leave” campaigners, including Boris Johnson, appear to scupper each other’s bids. May appoints “Leavers” in all Brexit-related cabinet positions, giving Johnson the foreign ministry.
October 2, 2016: Having stated that “Brexit means Brexit”, May says Britain will begin the formal process of leaving the EU by the end of March 2017. This involves triggering Article 50 of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty. The pound tumbles after May suggests she will go for a “hard” Brexit if it is the only way to end the free movement of people between the UK and the EU.
November 4, 2016: May’s timetable is thrown into doubt when English High Court judges rule that the government needs parliamentary approval before it can trigger Article 50. The Eurosceptic tabloid press lashes out at the judges, describing them as “enemies of the people”.
‘No deal is better than a bad deal’
January 17, 2017: May sets out her views on Brexit in a speech at Lancaster House, the very place where Margaret Thatcher announced her support for the Single European Market 29 years earlier. The prime minister says Britain will leave the single market and will reject any deal that leaves it “half in, half out”. She adds: “No deal is better than a bad deal.”
January 24, 2017: After a challenge by the government, the Supreme Court upholds the earlier ruling by the High Court judges, giving parliament – where a majority of MPs oppose Brexit – a chance to halt the whole process.
March 13, 2017: Parliament approves a bill giving the government the authority to invoke Article 50, with the opposition Labour Party, led by the Eurosceptic Jeremy Corbyn, telling its MPs to respect the result of the referendum. In response to the vote, Scotland’s pro-EU first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, says she plans to have a second referendum on Scottish independence, stressing that most Scottish voters want to remain part of the EU.
Article 50
March 29, 2017: May sends a letter to Brussels formally triggering Article 50, which starts the clock on the process of the UK leaving the EU. The move gives Britain and the EU two years to negotiate the terms of their divorce.
EU leaders respond two days later with a roadmap setting out their conditions. They include the UK honouring its commitments to the EU through a financial settlement (estimated at some €40 billion), granting EU citizens in Britain a residency permit, and ensuring there is no physical border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Britain had counted on the EU’s 27 remaining member states being divided and ill-prepared, but it is soon apparent that the opposite is true.
Theresa May signs the letter officially invoking Article 50. Christopher Furlong, AFP
Snap election backfires
June 8, 2017: Weeks after calling a surprise general election to strengthen her hand, May sees her move backfire spectacularly as the Conservatives lose their majority in parliament. Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which supports a “hard” Brexit, makes a deal with the Conservatives, allowing May to stay in power. But her wafer-thin majority means the already tortuous path to Brexit is getting even more arduous.
June 26, 2017: Formal negotiations on withdrawal begin between a weakened UK government and the EU, with a thick fog covering the road to Brexit.
December 13, 2017: Rebel Conservative MPs side with the opposition, forcing the government to guarantee a vote in parliament on the final Brexit deal, when it has been struck with Brussels.
December 15, 2017: The EU agrees to move on to the second phase of negotiations after a preliminary agreement is reached on the Brexit “divorce bill”, the Irish border and EU citizens’ rights. May agrees in principle to a so-called “backstop” – a safety net ensuring there is no return to physical border checks in Ireland, whatever the outcome of trade talks between the UK and the EU.
March 19, 2018: The UK and EU make decisive steps in negotiations. Agreements include dates for a transitional period designed to ensure “an orderly withdrawal” from the bloc. But EU negotiators warn that there are issues still to be sorted out, most notably on the Irish border.
Hardliners quit
July 7, 2018: After months of a power struggle between “hard” and “soft” Brexiters within the government, May announces she has united her cabinet behind a compromise deal, dubbed the “Chequers” plan, which would leave Britain in a close relationship with the EU. But the plan is too soft for some, prompting May’s chief Brexit negotiator David Davis to resign two days later, soon followed by Johnson.
July 19, 2018: The EU Commission publishes a document urging member states to accelerate preparations for a “no-deal” Brexit. Days later, the governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, says the risk of Britain leaving the EU without an agreement is “uncomfortably high”.
September 19-20, 2018: May’s position at home is further weakened when her Chequers plan is rebuffed at an informal summit in Salzburg, with EU leaders dismissing her proposals as unacceptable.
October 20, 2018: Hundreds of thousands of pro-EU protesters march in London calling for a second referendum, with polls suggesting “Remain” would win. Organisers say 700,000 people attend the event, making it the country’s largest rally since huge protests in 2003 against the war in Iraq.
An anti-Brexit campaigner outside the Houses of Parliament in London on December 11, 2018. Oli Scarff, AFP
A deal – and more resignations
November 13, 2018: The UK government says it has finally reached a deal with Brussels. Citing opposition to the Northern Ireland backstop, another four ministers resign from May’s cabinet two days later, including Brexit minister Dominic Raab. They say the backstop will threaten the UK’s territorial integrity.
November 25, 2018: EU leaders approve the deal at an extraordinary summit in Brussels. The next day, May says the UK parliament will have its say in a vote on December 11.
May's historic defeat
December 10, 2018: Facing a crushing defeat in parliament, May postpones the vote on the Brexit deal and says she is heading to Brussels to secure further guarantees on the Northern Ireland question. She is promptly rebuffed by EU leaders, who say there is no scope to renegotiate the deal. Sensing an opportunity, Brexit hardliners in the Conservative Party seek to oust May in an internal vote two days later. But she survives.
December 13-14, 2018: Back in Brussels, May fails to wrest further concessions from EU leaders wearied by months of gruelling and chaotic negotiations. Donald Tusk, the European Council president, stresses that the backstop is intended as an insurance policy that would be replaced in time by a comprehensive trade deal.
January 15, 2019: May suffers a crushing defeat in parliament, where her Brexit deal is rejected by an overwhelming margin of 230 votes – the largest defeat for a sitting government in history. Labour's Corbyn calls a no-confidence vote for the next day, but May survives – again – as Tory MPs who shunned her Brexit plan this time rally behind the PM.
Back to Brussels
January 29, 2019: Just a fortnight after her humiliating defeat, May bounces back with a series of victorious votes in parliament. MPs notably reject amendments that would have delayed the UK's withdrawal and made a no-deal Brexit impossible. A narrow majority also say they will back May's deal if “alternative arrangements” are found to replace the backstop, giving the prime minister a mandate to restart negotiations with the EU.
Brussels, however, says the Irish backstop is "part and parcel" of the Brexit deal and will not be renegotiated.
March 12, 2019: May’s withdrawal agreement is again rejected by the House of Commons – this time by a margin of 149 votes – after the UK’s attorney general, Geoffrey Cox, says minor concessions secured by the PM on the Irish border question will not prevent Britain from being permanently tied to the EU.
March 14, 2019: Parliament votes overwhelmingly to seek a delay in Britain's EU exit, beyond the March 29 deadline – which would require the approval of all 27 other EU members.
March 29, 2019: The UK is set to leave the EU, with or without a deal, unless both sides agree to delay Brexit, or Britain chooses to cancel it altogether.
Exit May
March 14, 2019: Parliament votes overwhelmingly to seek a delay in Britain's EU exit, beyond the March 29 deadline – which would require the approval of all 27 other EU members. Days later, MPs force May to seek an extension until June 30, but EU leaders offer her two alternatives: May 22 if the deal is passed, April 13 if not.
March 29, 2019: MPs reject the withdrawal agreement for a third time but are unable to find a majority for any alternative, including a second referendum. Two weeks later, May has no other option but to seek yet another delay in Brussels. EU leaders agree to a “flexible” extension until October 31, with the possibility of Britain leaving earlier if parliament passes the deal.
Theresa May fights back tears as she announces she will step down on May 24. © Toby Melville, REUTERS
May 23-24, 2019: Britain has to take part in European elections, having failed to exit the union. They result in a big win for Farage’s Ukip and a crushing defeat for the Conservatives and Labour. The day after the vote, May announces she will step down on June 7.
Enter Johnson
July 23-24, 2019: Boris Johnson takes over at Number 10 after winning the Tory leadership contest.
August 28, 2019: Parliament is prorogued for five weeks at Johnson’s request, sparking fears the PM plans to by-pass MPs and force a no-deal Brexit.
September 3, 2019: 21 rebel Tory MPs are expelled from the party after voting against the government’s plans to leave on October 31 with or without a deal. Two days later, Johnson says he would “rather be dead in a ditch” than ask for another extension.
September 9, 2019: The so-called “Benn Bill” comes into law, making a no-deal exit from the EU impossible without parliament’s approval. At the end of the month, the Supreme Court rules that the suspension of parliament was unlawful.
October 17, 2019: After weeks of acrimony, UK and EU officials suddenly announce they have reached a new deal that replaces the Irish backstop following major concessions by Johnson’s government. However, MPs withhold their approval until laws implementing Brexit are in place, effectively forcing Johnson to seek another extension.
October 28, 2019: EU leaders agree to yet another Brexit “flextension”, until January 31. It will be the last.
‘Get Brexit Done’
December 12, 2019: After campaigning on a promise to “Get Brexit Done”, Johnson’s Conservatives secure a decisive victory in a snap general election, gaining a massive 80-seat majority in parliament. The result all but stamps out Remainers’ last hopes of halting Brexit.
"Get Brexit Done" became the Tories' main slogan at the party's conference in September 2019. © Henry Nicholls, REUTERS
January 23, 2020: The withdrawal agreement eases through parliament and becomes law. Six days later, European lawmakers give their approval to the deal.
January 31, 2020: The UK formally leaves the European Union at the stroke of midnight, becoming the first member state to do so. An 11-month transition period begins the next day, during which Britain is still bound by EU rules.
March 2, 2020: The two sides begin marathon talks on the future UK-EU relationship, which Johnson promises to wrap up by December. However, progress is delayed by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
July 1, 2020: The UK government allows a deadline to seek an extension to lapse, despite a distinct lack of progress on a host of thorny issues, including fishing rights in UK waters.
Christmas ‘present’
September 9, 2020: EU leaders launch legal action after the UK government publishes a highly controversial bill to rewrite parts of the withdrawal agreement it signed in January. Brussels says the British move "seriously damages trust".
October 16, 2020: Johnson warns that Britain must “get ready" for the prospect of no-deal Brexit and “go for the Australia solution” on trade issues, a day after France’s President Macron says London must back down in a row over fishing rights.
November 26, 2020: The UK’s Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) predicts that a no-deal Brexit would strike a devastating blow to parts of the UK economy and result in hundreds of thousands of job losses.
December 18, 2020: Negotiators miss one of several self-imposed deadlines to reach a deal, owing to continued disagreements on fishing rights and the so-called level-playing field, a set of common rules designed to guarantee open and fair competition. European lawmakers set another deadline for December 20, which is also missed.
Boris Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen pictured in Brussels on December 9, 2020. © Olivier Hoslet, AFP
December 24, 2020: After days of round-the-clock talks, the two sides finally strike a trade deal on Christmas Eve. "We've taken back control of our laws and our destiny,” says a jubilant Johnson, hailing the deal as his “present” to the nation. "Parting is such sweet sorrow." adds a more measured Ursula von der Leyen, the EU Commission president. “It is time to leave Brexit behind.”
December 30, 2020: EU chiefs Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel, the heads of the European Commission and European Council, smiled at a brief televised ceremony to put their names to the 1,246-page Trade and Cooperation Agreement. The document was then flown by Britain's Royal Air Force to London for Johnson to add his signature. The UK's lower House of Commons also voted overwhelmingly by 521-73 to back it.
December 31, 2020: Brexit takes full effect at midnight.
Brexit becomes a reality on Thursday as Britain leaves Europe's customs union and single market, ending nearly half a century of often turbulent ties with its closest neighbours. © Studio graphique
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france24--2020-01-30--World Health Organization declares coronavirus an international public health emergency

World Health Organization ( WHO ) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrives for a press conference following a WHO meeting to discuss whether the new coronavirus outbreak constitutes an international health emergency in Geneva , Switzerland on January 30 , 2020 .
The World Health Organization declared on Thursday that the coronavirus epidemic in China now constitutes a public health emergency of international concern .
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus , WHO director-general , announced the decision after a meeting of its Emergency Committee , an independent panel of experts , amid mounting evidence of the virus spreading to some 18 countries .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ that recent weeks have witnessed an unprecedented outbreak which has been met by an unprecedented response .
“ Let me be clear , this declaration is not a vote of no confidence in China , ” he said .
“ Our greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems , ” he added .
The WHO panel , chaired by Didier Houssin of France , is composed of 16 independent experts .
Twice last week the experts had decided not to declare an emergency while @ @ @ @ @ @ @ awaited evidence of confirmed person-to-person spread of the virus in other countries , so as to meet their criteria for a global emergency .
The declaration of a global emergency triggers recommendations to all countries aimed at preventing or reducing cross-border spread of disease , while avoiding unnecessary interference with trade and travel .
It covers temporary recommendations for national health authorities worldwide , which include stepping up their monitoring , preparedness and containment measures .
Although the WHO has no legal authority to sanction countries , it could ask governments to provide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ restrictions that they impose in the event of an international emergency .

The nationwide death toll in China's coronavirus outbreak has risen to 213, with nearly 2,000 new cases confirmed, the National Health Commission said on Friday.
World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrives for a press conference following a WHO meeting to discuss whether the new coronavirus outbreak constitutes an international health emergency in Geneva, Switzerland on January 30, 2020.
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In its daily update, the commission said 43 new deaths had occurred as a result of the virus, all but one of them in hardest-hit Hubei province where the virus first emerged.
The latest numbers indicate that the daily death count and the overall spread of the virus within China were continuing to grow steadily, despite unprecedented quarantine measures imposed on Hubei a week ago and other preventative steps nationwide.
On Thursday, Chinese health officials had reported a nationwide total of 38 new deaths, all but one of them in Hubei.
01:40
The National Health Commission said there were 1,982 new confirmed cases, bringing the total to just under 10,000.
Another 102,000 people were under medical observation with possible symptoms of the respiratory ailment.
01:42
The WHO had initially downplayed the threat posed by the disease, but revised its risk assessment after crisis talks on Thursday.
"We must all act together now to limit further spread... We can only stop it together," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a briefing in Geneva.
01:35
Tedros nevertheless said travel and trade restrictions with China were unnecessary to stem the spread of the virus, which has now been confirmed in more than 15 other countries across the globe.
Many countries have already urged their citizens not to visit China while some have banned entry for travellers from the central Chinese city of Wuhan, where the virus first surfaced.
(AFP)
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france24--2020-01-30--France confirms sixth case of coronavirus infection, health official says

France confirms sixth case of coronavirus infection , health official says France has confirmed a sixth case of infection by @ @ @ @ @ , a French health official said on Thursday .
France confirmed its first three cases @ @ @ @ @ Friday , a fourth case on Tuesday and a fifth case on Wednesday .

France has confirmed a sixth case of infection by the new coronavirus from China, a French health official said on Thursday.
A laboratory operator wearing protective gear handles patients’ samples in a laboratory of the National Reference Center for respiratory viruses at the Institut Pasteur in Paris, France on January 28, 2020.
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France confirmed its first three cases of the Wuhan coronavirus on Friday, a fourth case on Tuesday and a fifth case on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, a jet carrying around 200 French citizens flew out of the virus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan on Friday, according to AFP journalists on board the flight.
The French military aircraft is bound for southern France, where the passengers will undergo a 14-day quarantine, in case they are carrying the new coronavirus.
The United States and Japan have already carried out airlifts from Wuhan for their citizens. A second US flight is planned in the coming days.
Britain also plans to evacuate around 200 of its citizens on Friday and Australia and New Zealand are among others organising similar operations.
The European Commission has said it is planning a flight to evacuate more European nationals.
Beijing has taken extreme steps to stop the spread of the virus, effectively quarantining more than 50 million people in Wuhan and surrounding Hubei province, including thousands of foreigners.
The World Health Organization on Thursday declared a global emergency over the virus, which has also spread to more than 15 other countries.
China's death toll from the virus rose to 212 on Friday as hardest-hit Hubei province reported 42 new fatalities.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, REUTERS)
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