Anadolu Agency's Morning Briefing - Dec. 24, 2021

ISTANBUL (AA) - Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments in Turkey, around the world, and the coronavirus pandemic.

- World

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Thursday that the US agreed to start talks on security guarantees for Russia early next year in Geneva.

The Russian president denied that Russia is provoking a gas crisis in Europe. Speaking at an annual news conference in Moscow, Vladimir Putin said allegations against the Russian gas company Gazprom are "lies" and "an attempt to turn everything upside down."

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg held a phone call Thursday to discuss their "shared concern" about the Russian troop buildup near the Ukraine border, according to the State Department.

US-China rivalry caused Nicaragua to break ties with Taiwan, the self-ruled island nation’s foreign minister said Thursday.

An explosion shook the front of the Passport Directorate General in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul, security officials said Thursday.

Patients infected with the omicron variant of the coronavirus have a lower risk of hospitalization compared to those who contracted the delta variant and are significantly less likely to develop severe symptoms, according to a study by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA)

Italy reported 44,595 new COVID-19 infections Thursday, the highest daily figure since the start of the pandemic.

Germany should brace for a surge in coronavirus cases at the beginning of next month due to the rapidly spreading omicron variant, the health minister warned Thursday.

Coronavirus infections continued to skyrocket in Spain, with the Health Ministry reporting a staggering 72,912 new cases Thursday.

Catalonia is set to introduce fresh COVID-19 restrictions, including a night curfew and a limitation of gatherings, after authorization from the region's top court Thursday.

Amid a surge in COVID-19 cases due to the new omicron variant, Greece will start implementing new measures from Friday to stem rising infections.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a second at-home drug treatment for the coronavirus one day after the agency gave a green light to the first.

US forces in Japan have violated the country’s COVID-19 measures, resulting in hundreds of infections among American personnel at a military facility.

- Developments in Turkey

Turkey has administered more than 127.2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines since it launched an immunization drive this January, according to official figures released Thursday.

More than 56.7 million people have received a first jab, while over 51.3 million are fully vaccinated, the Health Ministry said.

The Turkish lira strengthened Thursday in newly announced parity rates against foreign currencies, rates released every morning by the Turkish Central Bank for FX-protected lira deposit accounts.

Turkey's economic model will show positive results and rapid transformation before next summer, Treasury and Finance Minister Nureddin Nebati said Thursday.

Turkey is pursuing a "realistic foreign policy" based on the superiority of the diplomatic initiative over a wide geography, the country's foreign minister said Thursday.

"We have a proactive approach to diplomacy, not reactive, without letting events rule us," Mevlut Cavusoglu said at the closing ceremony of the virtual International Security Academy organized by the International Relations Association.

Turkey and Montenegro on Thursday agreed to strengthen cooperation between their respective legislative assemblies.

Turkey's parliament speaker Mustafa Sentop met with his Montenegrin counterpart Aleksa Becic in the capital Podgorica, where they agreed that the common historical heritage between the two countries contributed to the continuous progress in relations between their parliaments.