South Korea considers rescheduling upcoming UN summit over omicron variant: Seoul

Moscow [Russia], Nov 30 (ANI/Sputnik): South Korea is revising plans to host several major international events in December, including the 2021 Seoul UN Peacekeeping Ministerial, the country’s foreign ministry said. on Tuesday.

The major UN conference was scheduled for 7-8 December. Another important event – ​​the fifth Korea-Africa Forum involving the African Union (AU) – was scheduled to take place in Seoul from 9–10 December.

“As the Omicron virus continues to spread, the government is reconsidering the upcoming events in December,” ministry deputy spokesman Ahn Eun-joo, quoted by Yonhap news agency, told a briefing.

The spokesman said the ministry is in dialogue with UN officials and AU member states, as well as local health authorities.

The new strain Omicron is believed to have originated in southern Africa and has already been traced to several countries in other regions, triggering a new wave of travel restrictions and other health-related restrictions around the world .

The World Health Organization identified Omicron as a variant of concern because of the high number of mutations, including 32 mutations in the spike protein, possibly making it more transmissible and dangerous. (ANI/Sputnik)