COVID-19: US praises S Africa for forthcoming approach

The US praised South Africa on Saturday for quickly identifying the new SARS-CoV-2 variant called Omicron, and for sharing this information with the world — a barely veiled criticism of China's handling of the original COVID-19 outbreak. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor, and they discussed cooperation on vaccinating people in Africa against COVID-19, the US Department of State said. "Secretary Blinken specifically praised South Africa's scientists for the quick identification of the Omicron variant and South Africa's government for its transparency in sharing this information, which should…