ah let. mm hm. ah, ah ah, this is d w. news coming to you live from berlin. people around the world in different time zones bring in the new year to australia's largest city sydney is among the 1st to welcome 2020 tooth drawing thousands of revelers to watch it's

famous. fireworks display record numbers of code 19 case. it's also coming up, jordan to use new chancellor gives his 1st new year's eve address off shots urges the public to stand together and get vaccinated and fleeing dangerous fires. in the american state of colorado, tens of thousands are forced to evacuate as powerful winds and try conditions fuel the past moving plane. hello, i'm terry martin. welcome to the program. it's new years eve and australia is one of the 1st countries to kick off 2022 with a bang. let's go live to sydney harbour worth. thousands have gathered to watch the iconic fireworks display. i'd like to see his ears. crowds are being kept small his time. i hope we get the pictures in a moment. austrian health authorities have reported a record number of corona virus cases, many of them in sydney,

in his annual new years. message prime minister scott morrison said australian should be optimistic about the coming year. well, sorry, but about those pictures. germany's a new chancellor has recorded his 1st new year's address to the nation and comments due to be broadcast later today. all of shawl, shoulds erst, all germans, to stand together in the fight against coven 19, and to get vaccinated. other than tackling the pandemic, the german leader said, the biggest challenge for the upcoming year was to lay the foundations for germany's future development. on the one small changes that today i am the one speaking to you one you guys have as your federal chancellor. things that different this year, after 16 years of new years addresses by angle america, germany's new head of government rose to the task for the 1st time. chancellor shall send out the challenges faced by the country in 2021. acknowledging the

hardships that happen and jeered, such as the summer slots in west and germany, and praising the resilience. people have shown, especially during the pandemic, one to reply each day. some people complain that society is divided. i'd like to take this opportunity to make it very clear that in fact the opposite is true. our country is standing together. what i see everywhere is tremendous, solidarity and incredible spirit of helping others, and people coming together and mutual support. in order to cub coby 19 infections or shots appeared once again to people to get vaccinated, isn't that any we know that those who are not yet vaccinated are at particular risk is becoming infected and suffering from long and severe illness. for this reason, i would like to urge you once more to get vaccinated for the new government's vaccination efforts have already heed their 1st milestone with 13000000 vaccines

administered since the end of november. and further, $13000000.00 doses planned by the end of january allow shield so, so took the opportunity to emphasize to coalitions goes on climates and mr. ma, within 25 years, we want germany to become climate new chosen. to achieve this, we will move forward with the greatest transformation our economy is seen in more than a century. in this period we will achieve independence from coal, oil and gas. and he reminded listeners of one of his social democratic party's key election promises and pay is also a matter of respect. that's why in 2022 will be taking a major step and increasing the legal minimum wage to 12 years per hour. shelter, 5 new year's address soon with optimism. it was a declaration of good faith, but he also called on people to play the part in forming the future. 15. i'm the grid, the beginning of the new decade, a new era, as joining an era that will be successful if we actively shape it. because we can

make a difference if we remain determined and take our fight into our own hands than the spring in our chief political editor, mikella crooked here. mikaela. tell us why this annual address matters for the new chancellor. well, 1st of all, it is 1st address mocking the beginning of the new era, the post macro era, and it's the only scheduled direct address to the people of any german chancellor. i'm going to mca deposits from that once when she addressed people directly here in germany. over the call at 19 pandemic, right at the beginning and sold many felt missed an opportunity by not doing that just after or in the midst of the transition to the new government. so this is a direct address to ordinary germans and he, clearly he's calling on people not to let themselves be divided. well, we saw a couple of out takes from the, from the speech just a moment ago in our,

in our package. but you've seen the whole thing. are there any surprises in the speech? mckayla? did we learn anything new about chancellor shops as priorities? well, no huge surprises. but what i think is notable is that not any the spend less to studs on. just cobit 19 and the internal challenges, but he calls them people not to let the nascent be divided at the same time. we've heard from the president of german parliament, about bosses from his own s p. the party who calls on people to bridge those divisions. now this is more than just semantics. clearly, there seems to be a strategy of the incoming government to call on that unity. and to simply not address those divisions that are clearly tangible and that too much to avoid them from becoming ever deeper. the only concrete policy change we've really heard from all that. so it is that he is determined to see the german minimum wage rise within

the coming year to 12 euros is just over 9 years at this very moment in time. so it's very much nitty gritty domestic stuff with just pretty much the bottom 3rd of the speech really reserved for international issues, which he clearly also sees as important as he wants to see on that agenda. wanted to ask you about foreign policy in the speech. was there any mention of china or the tensions with russia on europe's eastern flank? it's getting a lot of attention lately. well, there was mention particularly of the conflict with ukraine, but he didn't address it directly and this is very much all actual. it's the social democrat s p d party. his party is traditionally one could say more understanding of russia than the conservatives were. and when it comes to concrete issues, he says that violations of orders are not acceptable. he stresses the close trans

atlantic ties, but he didn't, doesn't go into what that will translate into when it comes to concrete policy night like the know stream to pipeline. so criticize both by the united states and the u, that direct link between germany and russia and china. we are still to learn where this new sold government will stand both on a boy course of officials like the united states who over those paging olympics. but also on the question whether germany would also refuse to import goods that are produced in tiny regions where the weaker minority is suppressed and in camps. so he's still owed some concrete policy answers. at the same time, you sending a clear message that's germany. europe is in for drastic change. first and foremost, oh, climate neutrality. mckayla. thank you very much. archie, political editor, mckayla kutner. and you can watch shall the new year's dress by the german

chancellor in its entirety at 7 p. m. central. european time. here on d. w. now let's go back live to sydney harbor. now we got those pictures were thousands of gathered to watch the iconic fireworks display. take a look with unlike previous years, crowds are being kept small this time. oh, really and health authorities have reported a record number of wrote a virus case is many of them in city in his new years message prime minister scott morrison said australia should be optimistic about the coming year. beautiful day. and these are live pictures from sydney for 2022 has already begun

there. let's catch up on some of the other stories making headlines around the world. step 3 nuclear power plants go off grid in germany today. the last remaining 3 stations will be switched off at the same time, next year. nuclear phase out started under chance. what i'm going to michael after the nuclear accident in fukushima and is set to finish. as i said, by the end of 2022 people in south africa are streaming into cape towns cathedral for a 2nd day to pay their respects to archbishop. as desmond to to anglican clerk, cleric saw carried his coffin into saint george's cathedral, where the former nobel peace laureate, once railed against apartheid white rule. 22 died last sunday. at the age of 90 tens of thousands of residents in the u. s. state of colorado.

have been forced to evacuate due to quickly spreading wildfires. the flames swept through residential areas near the city of denver, burning hundreds of homes, a cos shopping complex, and the hotel authorities say these are the worst fires. the state has ever seen. ah, fake smite fills, the air outside as the fire approaches. at this diner in superior town, just outside denver, colorado panicked families tried to get out with strong winds of finding the fire with a woman dine as rushed to that cause, hoping to out race the fast moving blaze. gusts of a 100110 miles an hour can and have moved this fire down a football field in a matter of seconds. very little time to get out very little time to even get the

most important parts of your life. and yes, it will be a difficult process for colorado families who are due for direct affected to rebuild their lives. before the fire consumed nearly 600 homes, tens of thousands of residents in 2 towns near denver were evacuated. officials believe power lines down by strong winds could have caused the initial sparks and grass lands dried by an extreme drought offered the conditions the wild fires to grow out of control. testing even the most seasoned emergency cruise, we've actually heard no debris, sure. some firefighters in areas that had to pull out cuz we just got overrun. so there was a lot of brave stuff going on today. as the fi is continue into the night, the weather service is full, costing

a much needed snow full later on friday. snow that residents will be hoping can help dampen these flames. now look lifting news on the pandemic from south africa. government officials have lifted overnight, curfews and say as possible. the country may be over the peak of all micron. the variance was detected in aquatic province at the end of snow, mid november. sick patients were expected to overwhelm the health care system, but that did not happen. instead, rates hospitalization decreased. despite the more contagious nature of omicron. now a head of the new year south africans are feeling hopeful. oh, this was the epicenter of only crone, but infections have dropped. and residents of gutting province a basking in the relief as our local health care workers. me grown woe

at a at prominent health care level definitely for the average patient cause as much milder symptoms than even delta. if i look at my own personal experience of a 110 patients, we had to admit it from 3 to 4 patients. i'm not very severely you. the probability of landing in a hospital with only chron is 80 percent lower than the delta infections. experts say the reason is threefold. a great many people in south africa already have some immunity against the virus due to past infections. secondly, the new parent is wico, and thirdly, vaccines have helped almost 40 percent of the population is fully vaccinated. patients who nevertheless need hospitalization or not severely sick. 2 images severe he off to hospitalization. after listen,

we monitor how many needed oxygen or ethan. i see you more cynthia chemical cause and asked that he seemed it's v i v. hawkess's. when noted in those with on cranberry some south africans wonder if, oh, micron is a blessing in disguise. those who fall sick or not too sick and the infection that act as natural boosters out. you're watching dw news from berlin up next. it's business with rob watson. i'm terry martin for me and all the team. thanks for watching to the dark side.