During a visit to the Philippines, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will demonstrate America‘s commitment to defending its treaties by flying to an island province facing the disputed South China Sea.
This week, Harris met with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for talks aimed at reinforcing Washington‘s oldest treaty alliance in Asia and strengthening economic ties.
(11.11.2022)
But as of now, for weeks 51 and 52, carriers have scheduled no blank sailings on the Asia-North America West Coast route, which Murphy says is a reflection of the carriers‘ indecision as to how to approach the potential pre-Chinese New Year rush.
„It appears more to be a wait-and-see approach, in terms of whether there will be a seasonal demand spike,“ he added.
With the economic and social costs mounting from conflicting policy directives, Beijing needs to set explicit criteria for reopening based on vaccination coverage and the availability of intensive care units for treating an inevitable exit wave of cases, according to Yu Jie, a senior research fellow at Chatham House, a UK think-tank.
Ultimately, such conditions must be set, she said, “because it is no longer just a public health question, it is an economic question”.
For Biden, coming off a stronger-than-expected midterm result for Democrats is sure to factor heavily in the decision, along with the potential for a rematch against former President Trump. And while the White House has insisted for months Biden plans to run again, the president has left the door open to making a final decision after discussing with family during the holidays.