Navy Relaxes COVID-19 Rules Munity to Redouble Its Efforts to Determine the Virus’ Origin
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FACES MILITARY NHL Zack Snyder mixes NATO warns of Rookies making social commentary Russia’s behavior early impact for into zombie movie toward Ukraine teams in playoffs Page 18 Page 3 Page 24 Illinois Reserve unit found to have mishandled assault reports ›› Page 3 stripes.com Volume 80 Edition 29 ©SS 2021 THURSDAY,MAY 27, 2021 50¢/Free to Deployed Areas VIRUS OUTBREAK Follow-up probe into pandemic’s origins sought The Washington Post WASHINGTON — The United States’ top health official called Tuesday for a swift follow-up in- vestigation into the coronavirus’ origins amid renewed questions about whether the virus jumped from an animal host into humans in a naturally occurring event or escaped from a lab in Wuhan, Chi- na. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra told an annual ministe- rial meeting of the World Health Organi- zation that inter- national experts should be given “the independ- ence to fully as- Becerra sess the source of the virus and the early days of the outbreak.” Becerra’s remarks, which were prerecorded, signaled that the Bi- MOLLY CRAWFORD/U.S. Navy den administration would contin- Sailors assigned to Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser USS Port Royal return to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, in April. ue to press the WHO to expand its investigation to determine the vi- rus’s origins. Additionally, Biden on Wednes- day asked the intelligence com- Navy relaxes COVID-19 rules munity to redouble its efforts to determine the virus’ origin. In a statement, Biden said he has Fully vaccinated sailors can now make some port calls and often go mask-free asked for a report within 90 days and hopes the intelligence com- BY NANCY MONTGOMERY RELATED plans and strategy, said in a state- “safe haven” ports, including in munity “will collect and analyze Stars and Stripes ment. “Now with vaccines and Guam, Bahrain, Japan and Spain, information that could bring us Sailors who have been fully vac- US bases in Japan CDC scientific data, we are able to and use on-base gyms, commis- closer to a definitive conclusion.” cinated against COVID-19 can relax many of the procedures we saries and other services. In his statement, Biden said a now make some port calls, often update restrictions put in place and still provide for They can also go mask-free and report he received last month said go mask-free and deploy without the health protection of the force.” stop social distancing in most sit- the intelligence community has quarantining beforehand, the Na- amid surge in virus The rules apply to personnel on uations. Masks will still be re- “coalesced around two likely sce- vy has announced. Page 5 ships, submarines and aircraft, quired for medical and dental care narios” but has not reached a de- “With more than a year operat- Sawyer wrote in a servicewide providers when treating patients, finitive conclusion about whether ing in the COVID environment, the spread of COVID-19,” Vice message issued Monday. Fully on public transportation and for the virus emerged from human we have gained significant exper- Adm. Phillip Sawyer, deputy chief vaccinated personnel will be al- tise in mitigating and preventing of naval operations for operations, lowed port calls in designated SEE RULES ON PAGE 6 SEE PROBE ON PAGE 6 PAGE 2 • STARS AND STRIPES • Thursday, May 27, 2021 BUSINESS/WEATHER EU sues AstraZeneca over vaccine deliveries EXCHANGE RATES Military rates So. Korea (Won) 1,117.94 Associated Press tion for a further 100 million. The he added that “with a six-month de- Switzerland (Franc) .8962 Euro costs (May 27) $1.19 Thailand (Baht) 31.25 BRUSSELS — The European doses were expected to be deliver- lay, it’s obviously a failure.” Dollar buys (May 27) 0.7966 Turkey (New Lira) 8.4432 British pound (May 27) $1.38 Union took on vaccine producer ed throughout 2021. But only 30 His main argument is that Astra- Japanese yen (May 27) 106.00 (Military exchange rates are those available AstraZeneca in a Brussels court on million were sent during the first Zeneca should have used produc- South Korean won (May 27) 1,092.00 to customers at military banking facilities in the Commercial rates country of issuance for Japan, South Korea, Ger Wednesday with the urgent de- quarter. tion sites in the bloc and the United many, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Bahrain (Dinar) .3770 For nonlocal currency exchange rates (i.e., pur mand that the company needs to Deliveries have increased slight- Kingdom for EU supplies as part of Britain (Pound) 1.4129 chasing British pounds in Germany), check with Canada (Dollar) 1.2110 your local military banking facility. Commercial make an immediate delivery of CO- ly since then, but according to the a “best reasonable effort” clause in China (Yuan) 6.3930 rates are interbank rates provided for reference Denmark (Krone) 6.0807 VID-19 shots the bloc insists were European Commission, the compa- the contract. Egypt (Pound) 15.6753 when buying currency. All figures are foreign already due. ny is set to provide only 70 million While the bloc insists AstraZene- Euro .8177 currencies to one dollar, except for the British Hong Kong (Dollar) 7.7624 pound, which is represented in dollarsto AstraZeneca’s contract signed doses in the second quarter. It had ca has breached its contractual Hungary (Forint) 286.20 pound, and the euro, which is dollarstoeuro.) Israel (Shekel) 3.2473 with the European Commission, promised 180 million. obligations, the company says it Japan (Yen) 108.94 INTEREST RATES the EU’s executive arm, on behalf EU lawyer Rafael Jafferali told has fully complied with the agree- Kuwait (Dinar) .3006 Norway (Krone) 8.3265 Prime rate 3.25 of member states foresaw an initial the court that the company now ex- ment, arguing that vaccines are dif- Philippines (Peso) 48.10 Interest Rates Discount rate 0.75 Poland (Zloty) 3.68 Federal funds market rate 0.09 300 million doses for distribution pects to deliver the total number of ficult to manufacture and it made Saudi Arab (Riyal) 3.7503 3month bill 0.02 among all 27 countries, with an op- doses by the end of December, but its best effort to deliver on time. Singapore (Dollar) 1.3244 30year bond 2.26 WEATHER OUTLOOK THURSDAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST THURSDAY IN EUROPE FRIDAY IN THE PACIFIC Misawa 59/55 Kabul Seoul 83/53 64/52 Baghdad 104/73 Drawsko Osan Tokyo Kandahar Mildenhall/ 66/53 72/54 Pomorskie Busan 100/63 Lakenheath 55/46 62/42 66/59 Iwakuni Kuwait City 67/62 Bahrain Brussels Zagan Sasebo Guam 103/83 93/86 Ramstein 59/50 71/63 61/46 57/46 84/82 Riyadh Lajes, Stuttgart 105/72 Doha Azores Pápa 62/60 60/46 104/84 Aviano/ 66/47 Vicenza 65/51 Naples 71/57 Okinawa Morón 82/79 83/60 Sigonella Rota 80/57 The weather is provided by the Djibouti 71/60 Souda Bay American Forces Network Weather Center, 92/82 72/68 2nd Weather Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb. TODAY IN STRIPES American Roundup ...... 11 Classified .................... 13 Comics .........................16 Crossword ................... 16 Faces .......................... 18 Opinion ........................ 14 Sports .................... 19-24 Thursday, May 27, 2021 • STARS AND STRIPES • PAGE 3 MILITARY NATO warns of Russia’s Ukraine behavior Stars and Stripes In April, Moscow announced denounced by Washington and Ky- NATO has warned that Russia is that it was pulling back its forces iv. Ukraine described it as an esca- continuing with a “pattern of ag- from the Ukrainian border, claim- lation of Russia’s efforts to destabil- gressive behavior” toward Ukraine ing they had been conducting rou- ize the nation because it would pre- by stationing large forces near tine exercises. But it remains un- vent access to its ports in the Sea of their border and restricting navi- clear how many troops and gear Azov, which is connected to the gation in the Black Sea. were left behind during the with- Black Sea through the Kerch Strait. Earlier this year, Russia de- drawal. Stoltenberg said NATO would ployed more than 100,000 troops to Stoltenberg said Russia contin- continue to support its partners in the border region, raising concerns ues to restrict navigation in the the region, saying the Russian in the West that Moscow intended Black Sea, including near the moves were “part of a pattern of ag- to invade its neighbor with whom it Kerch Strait, which has been a gressive actions, which raise seri- has been at odds since the seizure flashpoint between Russian and ous concerns.” in 2014 of Ukraine’s Crimean Pen- Ukrainian warships in recent The two leaders also sharply crit- insula. years. icized the detention Sunday of an “While Russia has pulled back MIKE ABRAMS/Russian defense ministry Moscow announced last month it opposition journalist from Belarus some troops, tens of thousands re- Ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet train during an exercise in the will block all foreign naval vessels who was pulled off a Ryanair jet main in and around Ukraine, as sea last month. from transiting the strait until Oc- that was diverted to Minsk, in what well as significant amounts of tober, saying it would be conduct- Western leaders have called a case weapons,” NATO Secretary-Gen- sels headquarters by Estonian ern Ukrainian separatists in a war ing land and sea exercises in the ar- of state-sponsored hijacking. eral Jens Stoltenberg said Tuesday Prime Minister Kaja Kallas. that the United Nations estimates ea. during a visit to the alliance’s Brus- Moscow continues to back east- has claimed thousands of lives.