The News Roundup — International

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Published December 3, 2020 at 5:01 PM CST

Aerial view of a burning area of Amazon rainforest reserve, south of Novo Progresso in Para state.

The United Kingdom has become the first western nation to authorize a COVID-19 vaccine. The first doses of Pfizer’s vaccine could be rolled out in the country as early as next week.

A Chinese diplomat tweeted a doctored image depicting an Australian soldier murdering an Afghan child. Now, the two countries are locked in a trade disagreement after China refused to apologize for the incident.

From NPR:

This is the latest in a string of disputes between Australia and China, whose relationship is now at its lowest level in years. In April, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne called for an investigation into the origins of the coronavirus and the handling of the initial outbreak in Wuhan, China. Several rounds of counteraccusations between the two countries ensued, with arguments spilling over into areas of trade and sovereignty.

Hua insisted the current dispute is not related to the bigger picture of the two countries’ rocky relationship, but she reiterated her criticisms of Australia, saying the country “said and did the wrong things on issues related to Hong Kong and Xinjiang” — two areas where China has faced its own accusations of human rights abuses this year.

Brazil had set a goal to decrease the deforestation rate of the Amazon by 2020. Instead, that rate is currently at a 12-year high and has grown considerably quickly under the stewardship of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.

We cover the top international stories of the week on the global edition of the News Roundup.