with another system which pushes out into the atlantic and more right for wednesday, us president elect joe biden gets the green light to begin his transition to the white house. donald trump is going to the transition, but insists he'll keep up his fight to overturn the election result other than can be held. this is al jazeera live from doha. also coming up astra zeneca says it's covert 90 vaccine is 90 percent effective and cheaper than rivals making it affordable for the developing world. and the standoff in northern ethiopia, government forces prepare for

a final assault on the city of mccarrick. to graham forces refused to step aside late, u.s. president donald trump has accepted that a formal transition can begin for joe biden to take office. the head of the general services administration told biden that the process can begin acknowledging him. as the president elect trump said in a tweet that he's directing his team to cooperate, but is promising to keep up the fight. joe biden's transition team has welcomed the freeze up millions of dollars for the president elect's new administration. and biden's team can now work with federal officials on the pandemic response and on national security. we have political hay who is standing by for us live in washington, d.c. patty. so this is not an official determination of the winner, but obviously a very significant development, especially when we consider donald trump's response. i think that is by

far, one of the more significant parts of the story. donald trump. let's keep in mind since the election night. he's been saying he won that he was saying it was stolen and he said he's going to win in court and the needs that the states will give him the presidency. this is the 1st time we've had any indication from the president that he might possibly have actually lost the election is no longer going to live here. on january 20th, there was not conceding, but this might be as close as he actually ever gets to admitting that he didn't in fact win the election. he said the fights going to continue, but he's losing the fight. he is losing the fight in court after court with dozens, of court cases that have been thrown out. his lawyers go on t.v., they say they have massive indication of voter fraud when they go before the judge and the judge asked, are you alleging fraud? and they don't because you lied what judge, you can lose your law license. so he's lost in the court system, he's losing to the states. he was trying to put pressure on the, the lead's, the lawmakers in michigan to overturn the results of the election and send their

own electors to the electoral college. they said no, we're not going to do that in michigan certified their vote today, pennsylvania starting to certify their votes. so momentum is completely moving against the president. and why is this important? well, it's not just people who work in the white house in the, in the oval office, the west wing. that matter. the administration is thousands of employees there in the building over here, the building over there. and a lot of those people need to get background checks, so that takes a bit of time. these are thorough investigations, and for hundreds of them they need to get senate confirmation. that's why this matters. it's not just the millions of dollars the office space. it matters because he can now actually start staffing his administration. and also he can get information, his chief of staff and said, look, we have no faith that the administration is actually has a plan to roll out medicinals already. vaccines. look at the way they've handled testing just to give you a sense in this country. the cases are rising exponentially. every day. tests are

now leaving 9 men into this in short supply. they are taking 5 to 7, he says 10 days to come back, making them absolutely useless as so they say, look at how they've handled testing. why should we trust that they're actually ready to roll up this vaccine? so now this biden team can go to those officials in what's called operation warp speed and say, give me the details, show me the contracts, let me walk through the factories or, and the warehouses where all of these supplies are stored. so that is they say the critical piece of information that they need to have because if they need to be able to change the plan, they need to know what the plan is. so this is a very significant day. 'd when it comes to the u.s. presidential election. ok, when we look at the, the general services administration announcement on message to biden, and what it means and the signal led ascends. do you think that we're likely to see republicans coming out now? and encouraging to actually concede to give up the legal challenges

this would definitely be their excuse to do that. and i think more than even the g.s.a. letter, it's the tone that was sent in president trump's tweet that he's going to continue fighting. but let's go ahead and get i told her to let this transition go ahead. it's not just the president, though. the republicans are getting a lot of pushback from very important republicans, not only former national security, republican officials, they've come out now and said this is dangerous for the democracy. it is dangerous for the country. but we've also seen dozens and dozens of really high profiled c.e.o.'s the richest of the rich republican donors. they've come out and said enough, joe biden is going to be the president. republicans, you need to stand up and do what's right. so republicans are balance in this, right, so they don't want to make their donors angry at the same time. they don't want to make the president angry because nobody knows if he's still going to be the face of the republican party. he's indicated he's going to announce a run in 2024. 'd he's got a pretty fervent bases kind of more than $70000000.00 votes,

and he's already shown that he'll uses twitter there probably in governor of ohio said it was time for him to conceded he sent out a tweet basically saying, who's going to run against him for the republican primary, what he's up for reelection, so they're worried about that they're worried about the georgia senate race. there are 2 senate races that are going to happen next month. that will determine if joe biden can put forward most of his agenda because it will determine control of the senate. but republicans are really worried about is he's going to come out even with just a tweet. say, hey, my supporters in georgia, they didn't give me the state republicans in charge. let joe biden get those electoral college votes. go ahead and stay home. that could cost mitch mcconnell, the power that he seeks and currently has in washington. so it's a balancing game. they know that if they come out and say it's time to go, trump supporters are going to be very angry at them. possibly the president's going to be angry at them, and it could cost them the senate. so we'll see what they do. they're under a lot of pressure from both sides. thanks so much for breaking it all down for us political homelife from washington d.c.

. well, the good marshal is both a former come as secretary with the clinton white house and a transition team member joins us live via skype from washington. d.c. also thank you times a what do you make of us out with donald trump's response? what do you make of his response to all of this saying that he has told his team to begin initial protocols. i mean, this is the closest you think we may get to an abyss in of defeat. i do, and i'm relieved that he finally has taken this step, although i would note and it may seem like a technicality. but this announcement by the head of the general services administration, emily murphy is largely administer arial act in a should not have been influenced by politics. but the president's involvement again, tests the norms of behavior in the united states when it comes to politics and democracy. but what's important is the issue that you have raised,

which is the actual formal transition process can now get under way. the delay has been unconscionable and create problems and uncertainties that really were not necessary. so how much of a difference will this make to joe biden? and his ability to hit the ground running it will make a tremendous difference as, as you were just discussing. with regard to the fast moving developments with the pandemic and getting the vaccine vaccines out to the public. and that process vitally important within the united states and globally can now move forward in a much more organized and sensible fashion. and then on the broader issues over 1000 appointments that the president elect needs to make. to fill out his government and dozens,

literally dozens of federal agencies that need to adjust their priorities to match his campaign, promises and his platform. how do you see the next 11 weeks also playing out before the inauguration with the legal challenges being thrown out one by one. but how do you see this going well, as the legal challenges and certainly in the west, in this process, the legal challenges and the politics, particularly with the michigan and outspent and the legal case and pennsylvania finally seem to come together to push the president to do the right thing, but he's clearly signaled his intention to continue to fight those issues. thankfully, the real focus now can begin on moving forward with the setting up of the new administration in a sensible and organized fashion. but these people are going to have to make up for

lost time. it's going to be a lot of hard work over the coming weeks with a quite went on announcements and confirmation hearings prepared. speaking of appointments and announcements with the joe biden appointing, quite a few key figure is former deputy secretary of state tony, one of then ambassador linda thomas greenfield, and john kerry back as the point person on climate change. what do these appointments say to you about how the biden administration plans to plans to approach things, particularly when it comes to foreign policy? well, you're going to, you're seeing the president elect bring back a number of individuals who have experience in a variety of positions in government, which is already a departure from the national security and diplomatic appointments of the trauma administration. and you're seeing

a number of individuals with whom he has more closely over many, many years. and you've mentioned tony blinken in particular, goes back several decades with joe biden. but then you look back and also he's got his former colleague from the united states senate john kerry in a key position. so he's got seasoned professionals with broad experience and he's made some historic announcements as well, with the 1st woman to be the director of national intelligence. also we expect to hear in the next day or so the 1st woman to head the department of treasury, janet yellen. ok. i want to come back and ask you a question that i've asked of a few of analysts of the course of the evening. do you think with the deer say announcement or less said to joe biden, with what we've seen from michigan, do you think that we're going to see more republicans coming out and urging donald trump to concede defeat especially those with an eye on their own reelection

prospects and 2022. well, i appreciate that you've been asking that question and i think it's the right question to ask when it comes to politics. i'm fascinated by. what will transpire i'm, i'm well to predict it because i think what we have seen this. a number of republicans who against their better judgment are concerned that the president will criticize them or encourage candidates to challenge them from the right end of the spectrum politically. and that the don't want to feel vulnerable to that. so i guess is that most will run and hide for a while longer and hope to not have to address these questions. ok, thank you so much for your time, for your analysis of the good muscle, the, the, the general thurgood marshall jr. i'm sorry, i got there in the end. thank you for your time. we appreciate it. thank you. u.s.

president elect joe biden has released the names of his national security team. lots of seasoned veterans returning to washington state department correspondent wasn't. jordan has the story ahead of tuesday's announcement of his cabinet members, president elect joe biden spoke briefly to reporters after 3 hours of the $35.00 biden's team of diplomats and military leaders. it's a mil you're to washington, insiders and foreign leaders alike. former deputy secretary of state tony blinken, nominated to be the u.s. is top diplomat, ambassador linda thomas greenfield, chosen to represent the u.s. at the united nations and former secretary of state john kerry, back in government once more. this time as biden's point person on climate change beneath a photo of his granddaughter watching him sign the paris climate accords in 2015,

kerry told his twitter followers the climate crisis demands nothing less than all hands on deck. foreign policy experts say it will take the us years to repair the damage caused by the current president, donald trump, whose america 1st foreign policy shredded relations with the european union, the u.n. and nato. and wanted to be with give props, affection for strongman leaders such as vladimir putin and kim jong own. horrified both his political opponents and the u.s. as allies from a refusal to grant asylum seekers. safe haven to deciding to abandon both the paris climate agreement and the iran nuclear deal. experts say trumps foreign policy, ultimately undermined the u.s. his reputation overseas. you know, i think repairing and renewing america at home is critical. if we're going to be model soft power influence. countries want to work with us. the biggest

challenge facing the new white house getting too comfortable. he only slight concern is that this team may convince itself that they've got the right answer because they all sort of look at the world the same way. they've all been through a lot of the same experiences, and they're going to have to ask, how do we bring in fresh ideas? some recommendations, finding ways to restart. denuclearization talks with young, young, updating, and improving the nuclear deal with tara hahn and keeping the afghan peace talks on track. no matter how long it takes. what may be most important say foreign policy expert, reassuring the u.s. allies that it is reliable, and then proving it from day one. rosalynn jordan al-jazeera, still ahead on the lives at stake is international donors consider the center of

town. hello there. we've got some dry weather now. pushing into japan, bad of cloud, just easing out into the open waters. clear skies just tucking in behind, but fresher, weather. 2 times in tokyo to around 16 celsius sevens and it's there for seoul and for beijing, perhaps a touch warmer, insult, in celsius, struggling to get his double figures as we go through wednesday. as you can see, japan largely dry one or 2 showers into that eastern side of college, but nothing much to speak of just 14 celsius there for tokyo. i wish i was never too far away. so i was never too far away to central parts of china, but to the south of that, it is fine and dry with some sunshine, as is the case too close. in northern parts of the philippines indochina generates

a fair usual rash of showers across much of southeast asia and the really peping up . some are to seeing some heavy showers. the nation also seeing some lively outbreaks of right as we go through the next day or 2 and those showers pushing down into indonesia, some very wet weather, pushing into india as well. at the moment we got this circulation, this nasty development that may well develop into wayside phone as we go through the next day or so. let's choose days. picher pushing into time will not go on to pradesh, turning increased the wet as we go on through wednesday. and that rain pushing further west the thursday as a 2nd wave of covert, 19 brings a surge in infections. a few months ago, there were dozens of cases a day. now if we just 2000 and countries in force, new measures to curb contagion, this is the 1st step forward for the government aid master's degree in ta population. scientists are on the brink of releasing new vaccines to reduce the

spread of the virus. will it be enough to bring the global health crisis to an end? the coronavirus pandemic, special coverage on a move over the the of our jobs there, our top stories this hour, the u.s. federal office that oversees the transfer of power in the white house has told joe biden, his transition to the white house can formally begin means president elect's transition team can meet with federal officials. donald trump has accepted the decision, although he has not conceded trump said in a tweet that he's directing his team to cooperate,

but is promising to keep up the fight. us president elect joe biden has chosen several obama officials to serve in his administration. tony blinken will be nominated to be secretary of state. john kerry will take the lead on combating climate change. british drug company, astra zeneca and oxford university, say late stage testing of their covert, 19 back scene shows it's highly effective. they say it can be stored at fridge, temperature, making it cheaper and easier to distribute. u.k. prime minister abbas johnson is welcoming the development of the whole reports from london. it's being hailed as a vaccine for the world pharmaceuticals firm astra zeneca in partnership with the university of oxford says interim trial results will be sent to regulators immediately in the hope their product is approved for rollout. before the end of the year. we've got a vaccine, which is a fact it prevents severe disease intriguingly

in result of a headline is that we do have as are our own. and then of all those of the back. and i guess where we saw 90 percent or more data may be needed to confirm the 90 percent subgroup results, but cheaper to mass produce, easier to distribute, to more moderate temperatures than its competitors. the british vaccine is good news for poorer parts of the world. in time, the astra zeneca oxford vaccine could lead to an end to the pandemic, worldwide reaching parts of the world. the other vaccines on offer simply can't, but on a much shorter time scale, it's already being projected by the government here. that vaccine technology may lead to a resumption of normal life by easter for national restrictions in england was the 2nd of december addressing parliament remotely, while serving

a period of isolation himself. prime minister johnson outlined a post lockdown plan for england, a return to the regional system of tiered restrictions introduced in october, but strengthened this time to guard against a further surge 1st. we must get through winter without the virus really out of control. very hard by the gate at exactly the time when the burden on the n.h.s. is always great. this is designed to carry out safely just so from december, the 2nd until april shops will reopen, parts of the economy will be allowed to breathe again, and the government has promised to try malays can meet up over the christmas period . they raised more than cautious optimism to all of this is inside jonah, how al-jazeera london. well, those behind the oxford to astra zeneca experimental vaccine are talking up its low price and be easier to distribute,

especially in developing countries. as you seneca's says it costs about $2.50 a dose and be stored in normal fridge temperatures for up to 6 months. during this vaccine can sit in a fridge for 30 days or a regular freezer for 6 months. it will cost between $15.00 and $25.00 per dose. pfizer's vaccine will be about $20.00, however, it requires specialist deep freeze it. let's think now about the challenges facing the developing world of recurring the vaccine and distributing it among the poor. talk to neil parson is a retired ambassador of trinidad and tobago to the united states mexico. former secretary of the organization of american states and a medical doctor who joins us live from washington d.c. via skype. thank you for your time. what was your reaction to the news from astra zeneca about this vaccine, particularly in terms of what it will mean for developing countries. thank you. thank you for having me. indeed, i was elated to hear us just because position in the market and what we have been

able to offer along with modernize our think it's good news for the entire global community. i mean with 55000000 cases and 1300000 that's a lot of hope is pinned on the vaccine as a solution. but there are concerns, as you rightly stated, that poor emissions can be left behind. and we have already seen where high income countries have been pushing these nooses in advance. in fact, it is assumed it's over the world. $6400000000.00 is a potential scenes coverage import. another $3200000000.00 is on the negotiations or resumed in some form. i don't want to situation where p. is the most, the least gets in front of the queue and we are concerned there's several countries should be concerned about it who plead with some in to potentially pending solutions to this who were not at the situation as we saw back in 2009 with

each one and one. so what are the major challenges and getting the vaccine to low income developing countries that you foresee, or is it just about who gets a vaccine 1st? when it challenges will be logistics, production capability and what i call vaccine nationalism, many governments are already seeking to use the law to support parity access to future since through advance purchase agreements. and for in fact, luckily for us to a truly good things that happened. what is it wu has already put out 3, very, very strong documents, guiding the planning process in countries and, and seeks to gain hooty equality and parity in the really is that since could be distributed including but seen specific recommendations. and secondly, and probably more salient point here, is that there's a lot of love blue. biloxi income all over it all. x. . that is a joint effort between the government seems alliance to don't be

a cio under or is it of course happy. the coalition pepe demick, repaired reservations, and many of the countries, particularly in western hemisphere, including latin america and the caribbean, ram from the participants of this program. and, you know, dump him as a bird. they've been made to secure the initial quarter of 20 percent vaccines for populations. in other words, if a population has 1000020, percent of population should be tested, have seem to have agreed for that. that's quite a scuba spock's, an existing i would really want to look at the many countries sign on, the more countries that are signed on to this program. they bet it isn't a program as instructed in such a way that high income countries buying them have quantity offsetting the cost to an extent for no income countries. and of course, we'll deal with the logistical challenges in past years. and because of the french temperature is welcome news compared to for which can be an issue for

remote areas, particularly those with limited electricity. so clearly would not for the truth of that challenge. ok, thank you so much your time dr. neil path from there. we appreciate a pleasure. thank you. leaders in ethiopia's to great region are denying government claims that the military is surrounding the regional capital mechanic. minister has given the people's liberation front until wednesday to surrender or face an assault on the city. it's home to around half a 1000000 people to p.l.f. and so far, refused to stand aside saying the people are ready to die in defense of their land . malcolm webb is following developments from nairobi in neighboring kenya. the government has said its forces have surrounded the grey and capital regional capital of mackay, and that there are about 50 kilometers away. that follows an ultimatum given by present by prime minister made on sunday. he said he was giving the green forces 3

days to lay down their arms ahead of what he said was a final would be a final assault on the regional capital me kelly. but the bread in the bread michael, the leader of the to green forces, has refuted these claims. he said that it's not true that the city's rounded and he said 3 day ultimatum was actually a cover up on the part of the federal forces. he says are suffering following 3 defeats so these reports these claims by both sides completely contradict each other, but it's very hard to work out exactly what's going on. since communications, phone lines and internet in that part of the country have been cut off for weeks. congress has voted to suspend a controversial government budget. that sparked violent protests of the weekend. hundreds of people stormed the congress building on saturday, setting part of it on fire is widespread anger at the 13000000000 dollar budget, which critics say supports big business without properly addressing poverty and

pandemic. afghanistan's economy is forecast to contract by at least 5 and a half percent this year. largely due to the pandemic on top of that international aid could also be cut back delegates from around 70 nations. a jew to make pledges during a virtual conference in geneva in the coming hours, and its fear is aid to afghanistan could be slashed by up to 20 percent. about $4000000000.00 a year was pledged in 2016, but the pen democrats, even some don't, is cutting their budgets as they deal with the financial force at home. the latest round of aid for afghanistan will likely be tied to strict political and human rights conditions. as fears grow of rising taliban influence the wake of a u.s. troop withdrawal. when michael semple is a research and policy advisor all of us on the queen's university, belfast, he says the survival of the afghan state entirely depends on the international community. the talks are under way there,

that something which we didn't say last year. there are really 3 power allowed trucks on the international intervention. afghanistan, there's the military, which we've seen the talk about rapid withdrawal of u.s. forces, drawing, drawing numbers down to really unprecedented low, low levels. we've got to the we've got the peace track, which is frustrating. nobody can give you a, a precise deadline as to when that will deliver an agreement. but then you've got this 3rd struck, which is the development of funding. i think by refocusing on the issue of developments on doing ouster several months in which people were just looking at the, the military and the negotiations. it's a reminder, if there is to be a hope of peace in afghanistan, it really is important that the afghan state survives, the afghan state does not produce enough revenue yet to, to pay its way. and a continual continuing process for the international community is required,

or else it just falls apart. china has launched a probe to the moon to bring back lunar wrong. the 1st such attempt by any nation in more than 40 years blasted off from the wenchang space center in southern china is spending billions of dollars on its military run space program. it hopes to launch a manned mission to the moon before 2030. this is al jazeera and these are the top stories, the u.s. federal office that oversees the transfer of power in the white house has told joe biden. the formal process can begin, frees up millions of dollars for the president elect's new administration and allows access to federal officials. donald trump has accepted the decision, although he has not conceded said in a tweet that he's directing his team to cooperate, but is promising to keep up.