A Swiss pharmaceutical giant said yesterday it had a swine flu vaccine ready for trial as governments stepped up precautions to counter the newly declared influenza pandemic.
While millions could catch the flu, governments and health experts around the world have sought to play down fears that the A(H1N1) virus, also known as swine flu, could become a major killer.
Swine flu has so far infected almost 30,000 people in 74 countries and claimed 145 lives since it was first detected in Mexico in April, WHO figures showed.
Novartis stole a march on competitors by announcing it had completed a first batch of vaccine for pre-clinical trials. A spokesman said it hoped to have a vaccine in production by September or October.
The UN health agency raised its global alert to a maximum six on Thursday, saying it had reached pandemic status because of its geographical spread.
WHO Director-General Margaret Chan (陳馮富珍) said the declaration of a “moderate” pandemic should not spark panic and did not mean the A(H1N1) death toll would rise sharply.
She said raising the alert “means that the world is moving into the early days of its first influenza pandemic in the 21st century.”
The WHO said it would ask drugmakers to quickly prepare to produce swine flu vaccines once the production of seasonal flu vaccine ends.
Mexico has been the worst hit. Its government on Thursday increased the country’s death toll to 109 with 6,294 A(H1N1) infections. The US comes next. Its health authorities have reported 27 deaths and 13,217 cases.
Australia, the worst hit in the Asia-Pacific region, was considering raising its national flu alert and adopting powers to cancel sports events, restrict travel and even shut national borders, although officials stressed extreme measures were unlikely.
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the country had prepared well but faced problems because of the number of people who travel abroad. Australia has 1,307 confirmed cases including four in intensive care.
Beijing’s continued provocations in the Taiwan Strait reveal its intention to unilaterally change the “status quo” in the area, the US Department of State said on Saturday, calling for a peaceful resolution to cross-strait issues. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) reported that four China Coast Guard patrol vessels entered restricted and prohibited waters near Kinmen County on Friday and again on Saturday. A State Department spokesperson said that Washington was aware of the incidents, and urged all parties to exercise restraint and refrain from unilaterally changing the “status quo.” “Maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is in line with our [the
EXTENDED RANGE: Hsiung Sheng missiles, 100 of which might be deployed by the end of the year, could reach Chinese command posts and airport runways, a source said A NT$16.9 billion (US$534.93 million) project to upgrade the military’s missile defense systems would be completed this year, allowing the deployment of at least 100 long-range Hsiung Sheng missiles and providing more deterrence against China, military sources said on Saturday. Hsiung Sheng missiles are an extended-range version of the Hsiung Feng IIE (HF-2E) surface-to-surface cruise missile, and are believed to have a range of up to 1,200km, which would allow them to hit targets well inside China. They went into mass production in 2022, the sources said. The project is part of a special budget for the Ministry of National Defense aimed at
READY TO WORK: Taiwan is eager to cooperate and is hopeful that like-minded states will continue to advocate for its inclusion in regional organizations, Lai said Maintaining the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait, and peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region must be a top priority, president-elect William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after meeting with a delegation of US academics. Leaders of the G7, US President Joe Biden and other international heads of state have voiced concerns about the situation in the Strait, as stability in the region is necessary for a safe, peaceful and prosperous world, Lai said. The vice president, who is to be inaugurated in May, welcomed the delegation and thanked them for their support for Taiwan and issues concerning the Strait. The international community
COOPERATION: Two crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank off Kinmen were rescued, two were found dead and another two were still missing at press time The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) was yesterday working with Chinese rescuers to find two missing crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank southwest of Kinmen County yesterday, killing two crew. The joint operation managed to rescue two of the boat’s six crewmembers, but two were already dead when they were pulled from the water, the agency said in a statement. Rescuers are still searching for two others from the Min Long Yu 61222, a boat registered in China’s Fujian Province that capsized and sank 1.03 nautical miles (1.9km) southwest of Dongding Island (東碇), it added. CGA Director-General Chou Mei-wu (周美伍) told a