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Taiwan, North Korea, Iran and Palestine are all potential flashpoints that could distract western attention from the invasion in 2023
It was a good year to bury bad news – and bad deeds – as a clutch of dictators, assorted killers and repressive or anti-democratic regimes can testify. In Myanmar, Yemen, , Nicaragua, , Somalia and , to name a few crisis zones, egregious abuses and unrelieved misery attracted relatively scant, perfunctory international scrutiny.
The main reason for 2022’s blinkered perspectives is, of course, Ukraine, Europe’s biggest conflict since 1945. This is not to say war-torn Tigray or , would otherwise have made global headline news. Hard truth: western interest in developing-world conflicts is generally limited.
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Health minister Mark Butler argues decision ‘will not come as any surprise to the Chinese government’
Australia will impose mandatory Covid-19 testing for travellers arriving from China after a spike in cases in the tourism and business market.
The Australian health minister, Mark Butler, announced on Sunday that travellers from China would need to take a Covid test within the 48 hours before travel and show evidence of a negative result before entering Australia, starting from 5 January.

Chinese leader speaks of continuing struggles as thousands gather in Wuhan, epicentre of the pandemic three years ago
Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for more effort and unity as the country enters a “new phase” in its approach to combating the pandemic, in his first comments to the public on Covid-19 since his government changed course three weeks ago and relaxed its rigorous policy of lockdowns and mass testing.
In a televised speech to mark the New Year, Xi said China had overcome unprecedented difficulties and challenges in the battle against Covid, and that its policies were “optimised” when the situation and time so required.

As American companies seek to limit their exposure to the pitfalls of making goods in China, some are moving production to Mexico.

Australia holds first restriction-free party since Covid struck, with more than 1m revellers flocking to harbour
Australia celebrated its first restriction-free New Year’s Eve after two years of Covid disruptions, with more than a million revellers flocking to Sydney’s harbourfront and watching an elaborate fireworks display.
Sydney was one of the world’s first major cities to welcome in the new year and drew huge TV audiences around the world, with a public countdown and fireworks display over its opera house.

Steve Brine said the restriction on people arriving from China to England was only required because Beijing was not ‘upfront’ about its data
The requirement for travellers from China to England to provide a negative Covid test before departure could have been avoided if Beijing was “upfront” about its data, the chair of the Commons health committee has said.
on Friday by imposing checks on travellers from China from 5 January, after criticism from a growing number of Conservative MPs over his “dithering”.

From Ukraine developments and China’s Covid surge to renewable energy and hope for the Amazon
A near-inevitable global recession sparked by a lengthening war in Europe’s frozen east; an energy crisis coupled with soaring inflation; Covid-19 finally running rampant in China – predictions for 2023 are grim. Still, there are reasons to be hopeful. That same energy crisis has spurred an unprecedented demand for renewables, which are expected to boom, while in Brazil, a new president has sworn to protect the Amazon. Repressive regimes, meanwhile, will be nervously looking at Iran, where hardline clerics are locked in a struggle with a formidable pro-democracy uprising that threatens to overwhelm them next year.
Guardian correspondents across the globe have provided their take on what to watch out for in 2023:

AMA chief backs Australia’s policy of not testing arrivals but calls for more transparency, here and overseas
The Australian government is standing firm on its policy to not require incoming travellers from China to test negative for Covid, despite the UK and France joining the list of countries imposing such restrictions.
The Australian Medical Association president, Steve Robson, backed the position on Saturday, saying there was not enough data yet to show that testing every passenger would be beneficial.

It was a great year for a slight lifting of the veil on the final frontier – from redirecting an asteroid to a glimpse into creation
The year has been a blast in space exploration, from ’s big step in returning to moon missions, to glimpses at the origins of the universe and hope that humanity could survive the doomsday scenario of an asteroid hurtling towards Earth.
These are the events that shaped 2022 in space advances:

Trump tried to impose a total ban on the China-based app and some states have already prohibited its use on official devices
The US government has approved an unprecedented ban on the use of TikTok on federal government devices. The restrictions – tucked into a spending bill just days before it was passed by Congress, and signed by Joe Biden on Thursday – add to growing uncertainty about the app’s future in the US amid a crackdown from state and federal lawmakers.
Officials say the ban is necessary due to national security concerns about the China-based owner of the app, ByteDance. But it also leaves many questions unanswered. Here’s what you need to know.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says WHO officials stressed to Beijing the importance of sharing data ahead of easing of travel restrictions on 8 January
The World Health Organisation again urged China’s health officials to regularly share specific, real-time information on the country’s Covid surge, as the UK joined other countries in bringing in travel restrictions, citing a lack of data as the reason.
WHO Covid experts and “again stressed the importance of transparency and regular sharing of data to formulate accurate risk assessments and to inform effective response”, said the WHO chief,