The construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which will transport natural gas from Russia to Germany through the Baltic Sea, will be completed in August, the company in charge of the project announced on Monday.

“We believe that construction will be completed at the end of August. We are now 98% complete... Our goal is to put the pipeline into operation this year,” Nord Stream II AG executive director Matthias Warnig said in an interview with the Handelsblatt newspaper.

He stated that after its completion, the underwater pipeline linking Siberia’s gas fields to Western Europe will need three more months before it can start operating to obtain the necessary certificates and to conduct pre-launch tests. The first section of the pipeline was completed last month.

The construction has been delayed due to repeated US threats of sanctions against companies involved in the project. According to Warnig, US sanctions have delayed the project by a year and a half at the cost of millions of dollars. Washington claims the Russian pipeline poses a “grave threat” to Europe’s energy security and American national security. The US government under former president Donald Trump made it clear that Europe should buy more American gas instead of relying on Russian energy exports.

Washington also says it is concerned that Ukraine could lose out on $3 billion a year in gas transit fees that Moscow currently pays as part of a deal to keep using a network of Soviet-built pipelines running through the country to transport its gas into Europe.

Russia has repeatedly denied that it intends to stop using Ukraine to transport gas after the current transit deal expires in 2024. In his interview, Warnig also said the transit of gas through Ukraine will continue even after the current deal expires.

The current US administration – reluctantly – dropped many of its previously imposed sanctions earlier this year, after Germany insisted that it sees Nord Stream 2 as a positive development. President Joe Biden said that he had taken office too late to stop the construction of the pipeline and that it would be “counterproductive” to sanction allies given that the project was close to completion.

(CNN)The online racial abuse of some England players following Sunday's Euro 2020 final defeat by Italy has been described by the team's manager Gareth Southgate as "unforgivable" and "just not what we stand for."

Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka were targeted on social media after they missed penalties in the 3-2 shootout defeat at Wembley Stadium.

"For some of them to be abused is unforgivable," said Southgate, who was speaking at a virtual press conference on Monday. "Some of it has come from abroad, we have been told this, but some of it is from this country.

"We have been a beacon of light to bring people together and the national team stands for everybody. We felt the energy and positivity from the fans and I'm incredibly proud of that," Southgate added.

Before and during the Euro 2020 tournament, the England players have knelt before each of their matches in a display of unity in the fight against racism and inequality.

That was an act that caused anger among sections of the England fanbase, with some supporters choosing to boo as the players knelt.

London's Metropolitan Police said it was investigating the "unacceptable" social media comments on both Instagram and Twitter, while UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson also condemned the racist abuse.

England's Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford get ready to come onto the pitch during the Euro 2020 final between England and Italy.

England's Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford get ready to come onto the pitch during the Euro 2020 final between England and Italy.

"This England team deserve to be lauded as heroes, not racially abused on social media," Johnson said on Twitter.

"Those responsible for this appalling abuse should be ashamed of themselves."

In recent weeks, Johnson -- along with other lawmakers in his government such as Home Secretary Priti Patel -- have been specifically asked to condemn the England fans who have booed players taking the knee before kick-off but failed to do so.

Gary Neville, former England international, criticized Johnson for not condemning those who booed the players in their battle for equality when he had the chance.

"Gareth Southgate and the players a few weeks ago, about five days on the trot told us that they were taking the knee to promote equality and it was against racism," Neville told Sky News.

"The Prime Minister said it was ok for the population of this country to boo those players who are trying to promote equality and defend against racism.

"It starts at the very top."

"The fact of the matter is, there is an issue obviously in football, there is an issue in society where we feel it's acceptable basically to criticize players for sporting actions because of the color of their skin," added Neville.

Ahead of Euro 2020, Southgate penned an open letter to the country, outlining why he thought it was important for players to continue using their voice for good.

"This is a special group. Humble, proud and liberated in being their true selves," wrote Southgate in the Players Tribune.

Prince William said he was "sickened" by the discriminatory abuse while the Football Association in England said in a statement it was "appalled."

The English national team's Twitter account tweeted its support for the players on Monday.

"We're disgusted that some of our squad -- who have given everything for the shirt this summer -- have been subjected to discriminatory abuse online after tonight's game. We stand with our players."

READ: Argentina beat Brazil 1-0 to win Copa America

England players comfort teammate Saka after he missed a penalty during a penalty shootout after extra time against Italy.

England players comfort teammate Saka after he missed a penalty during a penalty shootout after extra time against Italy.

'Social media companies must take immediate action'

Football players receiving abuse on social media is commonplace.

Savills, a real estate service provider in the UK, tweeted on Monday that it is "committed to eliminating discrimination and encouraging diversity amongst our workforce" after one of its employees appeared to be one of those abusing the England players on Twitter.

"A full investigation will be carried out in regards to this unacceptable incident," it said.

"Savills abhors and has zero tolerance to any form of racism and racial discrimination and is appalled by the racist comments in these tweets. Savills is immediately investigating and will take appropriate action."

Rashford has continuously highlighted the racist abuse he's been the target of over the last few years.

In the hours after England's defeat by Italy, a mural honoring Rashford was vandalized with graffiti in Manchester, United Kingdom.

The artwork commemorated the Manchester United player's work to tackle child food poverty.

The online abuse has led to calls for social media companies to do more to police their platforms.

Earlier this year, former Arsenal forward Thierry Henry deleted his social media accounts following a spate of online racist abuse aimed at Black footballers and what he said was the inability of social media companies to hold users accountable for their actions. A few weeks after Henry had closed his accounts, English football clubs and governing bodies took part in a three-day social media blackout to protest against abuse.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, called the racist abuse "abhorrent," and called on social media companies to take immediate action to "prevent this hate."

"Racist abuse of any kind is abhorrent and will not be tolerated on or off the pitch," tweeted Khan.

"MetPoliceUK (The Metropolitan Police) will investigate the appalling online abuse aimed at England players. Social media companies must take immediate action to remove and prevent this hate."

The chair for the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, Julian Knight echoed Khan's sentiment.

"Social media companies once alerted to this abuse have an acute responsibility to immediately take it down," Knight said.

"The Government needs to get on with legislating the tech giants. Enough of the foot dragging, all those who suffer at the hand of racists, not just England players, deserve better protections now."

Facebook, which owns Instagram, said in a statement sent to CNN that it was "committed to keeping our community safe from abuse."

"No one should have to experience racist abuse anywhere, and we don't want it on Instagram," a Facebook Company spokesperson said.

"We quickly removed comments and accounts directing abuse at England's footballers last night and we'll continue to take action against those that break our rules. In addition to our work to remove this content, we encourage all players to turn on Hidden Words, a tool which means no one has to see abuse in their comments or DMs. No one thing will fix this challenge overnight, but we're committed to keeping our community safe from abuse."

Italy's goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma saves Sancho's penalty during the penalty shoot out during the Euro 2020 final.

Italy's goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma saves Sancho's penalty during the penalty shoot out during the Euro 2020 final.

In a statement sent to CNN, Twitter said it removed over 1000 tweets in the past 24 hours for "violating our rules."

Visit CNN.com/sport for more news, features, and videos

"The abhorrent racist abuse directed at England players last night has absolutely no place on Twitter," a Twitter spokesperson said.

"In the past 24 hours, through a combination of machine learning based automation and human review, we have swiftly removed over 1000 Tweets and permanently suspended a number of accounts for violating our rules -- the vast majority of which we detected ourselves proactively using technology. We will continue to take action when we identify any Tweets or accounts that violate our policies.

"We have proactively engaged and continue to collaborate with our partners across the football community to identify ways to tackle this issue collectively and will continue to play our part in curbing this unacceptable behaviour -- both online and offline."

Aleks Klosok contributed to this report.

July 12 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia reported 1,496 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the national tally to 139,284, the country's health ministry said Monday.

A total of five more COVID-19 related deaths and 3,858 recoveries were reported in the past day, bringing the respective national tallies to 689 and 107,524, according to the ministry.

The ministry said 55.2 percent of the country's population have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Mongolia launched a nationwide vaccination campaign in late February, with the aim of vaccinating at least 60 percent of its population.

MANILA, PHILIPPINES (12 July 2021) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $5.36 million grant to strengthen coronavirus disease (COVID-19) detection and containment in Mongolia.

The Strengthening Rapid Epidemic Response Capacity of Health Systems Project grant will help Mongolia respond to the ongoing outbreak of COVID-19 by providing resources and training on the conduct of reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests and administration of COVID-19 vaccines to target populations.

“The risk of continued spread of COVID-19 remains substantial in Mongolia. To effectively prevent this, Mongolia needs to expand its network of COVID-19 testing laboratories to increase RT-PCR testing capacity,” said ADB Senior Social Sector Specialist Raushanbek Mamatkulov. “At the same time, the country needs to rapidly prepare for COVID-19 vaccination to bring the epidemic under control and allow the safe reopening of borders, enterprises, and schools.”

The grant will expand RT-PCR testing capacity of 10 molecular biology laboratories and ensure safe immunization through procurement and supply of personal protective equipment, hand sanitizers, and thermometers. The project will support the successful uptake of immunization services by target groups and post-immunization surveillance to improve care and monitoring.

ADB will administer a $5 million cofinancing grant for the project from the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR). The JPFR is funded by the Government of Japan and has supported projects in Mongolia in poverty alleviation, improving livelihoods, and safeguarding the environment over the past 20 years. The Government of Mongolia will provide counterpart financing of $360,000.

The project is closely linked to the Support for COVID-19 Vaccine Delivery in Mongolia under the Asia Pacific Vaccine Access Facility (APVAX) which will provide safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines in Mongolia. It is expected to be completed in 2024.

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.

Mongolia’s new Ulaanbaatar Int'l airport has officially opened for commercial operations in what is being hailed a significant development for the economic growth of the landlocked country in north-central Asia.

Speaking during the July 4, 2021, opening ceremony, Mongolian President U.Khurelsukh said the new airport, situated 50 km south of the capital Ulaanbaatar, would boost air logistics hub growth and hoick tourism and the economy.

The inaugural commercial flight from the new airport was conducted by flag carrier MIAT - Mongolian Airlines (OM, Ulaanbaatar) to Tokyo Narita, Japan, using a B737-800.

Originally scheduled to commence operations in 2020, the opening was delayed because of COVID-19, with Mongolia only having resumed scheduled international traffic on June 1 since going into lockdown in February last year.

Politically seen as a symbol of Japan’s longstanding economic support to Mongolia, the new airport has cost JPY65.657 billion yen (USD595.8 million), 90% financed through a loan from the state-owned Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and 10% by the Mongolian government. The project is a joint venture between the Mongolian government and Japanese firms, including Mitsubishi Corporation, Narita International Airport Corporation, Japan Airport Terminal Company, and aviation services provider JALUX. A Mongolian-Japanese joint venture company, New Ulaanbaatar International Airport LLC (NUBIE), holds the concession to manage the airport for the next 15 years.

All international and domestic commercial flights to Mongolia will from now on operate through Chinggis Khaan International Airport. Airlines operating to/from there include MIAT, Aero Mongolia, Hunnu Air, Eznis Airways, Air China, Aeroflot, Turkish Airlines, Korean Air, Asiana Airlines, Air Busan, and SCAT Airlines.

First commissioned in 2013, the new airport has capacity for three million passengers and 11,900 tonnes of cargo per year. Facilities include, amongst others, a 35,300 sqm passenger terminal; one runway measuring 3,600 x 45m; a passenger apron of 104,200 sqm; 24 aircraft parking bays; 8,000 tons of fuel storage space; and a 43m high air traffic control tower.

Meanwhile, the old airport, Ulaanbaatar, will be used for general air transport development and training. By July 9, all airline assets had been transferred from the old airport, according to news reports.

Opened in 1957, Buyant-Ukhaa International Airport presented significant challenges, which resulted in the relocation. Its geographical position surrounded by mountains meant it could only be approached from one direction. The airport also experienced frequent flight cancellations because of low visibility from smoke and occasional adverse wind direction, especially in winter.

July 11 (Xinhua) -- Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Mongolia and China have maintained active cooperation, setting a real example of how neighboring countries help each other and overcome difficulties together, Mongolian Foreign Minister Batmunkh Battsetseg has said.

"Strengthening continuously mutually-beneficial cooperation with China is one of the Mongolian foreign policy priorities," Battsetseg told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Describing China as Mongolia's eternal neighbor with a long history of traditional relations, she said it's pleasing to see that the comprehensive strategic partnership with China has been deepening in all areas.

Last year, the two countries exchanged high-level visits and held meetings of intergovernmental commissions, maintained trade and economic interactions, and effective cooperation in preventing and curbing the spread of the pandemic, Battsetseg noted.

"We are sincerely grateful to the Chinese government and people for donating vaccines and essential medical equipment to Mongolia during this difficult time, as well as for sharing experiences in successfully combating the pandemic," she said, adding that China's vaccine support is very important for Mongolia.

Mongolia launched a national vaccination campaign in late February, aiming to vaccinate at least 60 percent of its 3.3 million population.

So far, over 55 percent of its population have been fully vaccinated, according to the country's health ministry.

"We believe that intensive and wide-ranging immunization will increase economic activity and opportunities for further cooperation with foreign countries, including China," said Battsetseg.

In addition, within the framework of long-term and medium-term development policies, Mongolia has set specific goals and started implementing measures to reduce poverty, increase people's incomes, improve quality of life and support business activities, said Battsetseg.

China is one of the country's largest trade and investment partners, Battsetseg said, noting that economic cooperation between Mongolia and China plays an important role in achieving the above-mentioned long-term development policy goals.

China's willingness to share development experiences and benefits with other countries, import more goods and services from abroad and pursue a policy of common development is a good opportunity for neighboring countries such as Mongolia, she said.

Moreover, Mongolia has supported China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) from the onset and actively participated in it, Battsetseg said, expressing her willingness to exchange experiences and implement joint projects with China not only in the real-economy sectors, but also in financial and e-service within the BRI framework.

Commending China's achievements in poverty alleviation, she said that Mongolia is also interested in exchanging experiences and cooperating with China in artificial intelligence, robotics, innovation, environmentally friendly technologies and tourism.

It is unbelievable that in Ulaanbaatar, reputedly, the coldest capital city in the world there is no ice palace. Until now, Mongolian athletes in training for winter games, have only been able to train in winter – when everything is frozen, sometimes at uncomfortably cold temperatures below -30 C. The only viable training option has been going abroad to use facilities in other countries. Fortunately, this is all due to change. When the ‘Steppe Arena’ – Mongolia’s first ever Ice Palace – opens in September, not only will athletes will able to train freely, but the country can organise world-class international competitions.

Designed by Mongolian architects, the ‘Steppe Arena’ has been built by international companies from Canada, the USA, Austria and Germany; experts from Austria and Finland have helped with ice-spreading technology. Over 600 Mongolian workers have been involved in the construction of the palace over the past three years.

Costing over MNT 23 billion, the ‘Steppe Arena’ is located near the Buyant Ukhaa Sports Palace, the swimming pool in the New Yarmag Complex, and football and basketball fields funded by the International Federation of Association Football.

The dimension of the rink is 30 m × 60 m, which is the approved standard of the International Olympic Committee; this will enable Mongolia to organise regional and international competitions. To fully guarantee the needs and comfort of judges and athletes, the ‘Steppe Arena’ will have 6 changing rooms and over 10 rooms for journalists and first aid services.

Yesterday, Wednesday (7 July), the Mongolian skating team with 14-year-old figure skating athlete O.Misheel tested the ice rings at the palace. Outside, in the city, it was over +20 Celsius outside on but inside the palace it was very cold. O.Misheel explained that she has not been able to skate since returning to Mongolia from the USA. She and other skaters are now aiming to participate in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

(The opinions expressed here are those of the author, Clyde Russell, a columnist for Reuters.)

Seaborne coal has become a quiet winner among energy commodities, lacking the attention of higher-profile crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG), but enjoying strong gains amid rising demand.

Both thermal coal, used in power plants, and coking coal, used to make steel, have rallied strongly in recent months. And in both cases the driver has largely been China, the world’s biggest producer, importer and consumer of the fuel.

There are two elements to China’s influence on seaborne coal markets in Asia; robust demand as the Chinese economy rebounds from the coronavirus pandemic; and Beijing’s policy choice to ban imports from Australia.

Both elements are reflected in the prices, with lower-quality thermal coal from Indonesia being the biggest beneficiary.

The weekly index for Indonesian coal with an energy value of 4,200 kilocalories per kilogram (kcal/kg), as assessed by commodity price reporting agency Argus, has surged nearly three-quarters from its 2021 low of $36.81 a tonne to $63.98 in the week to July 2.

There is a demand-pull element helping to boost prices of Indonesian coal, with data from commodity analysts Kpler showing China imported 18.36 million tonnes from the world’s largest shipper of thermal coal in June.

This was the second-biggest monthly volume China has imported from Indonesia according to Kpler records going back to January 2017, eclipsed only by last December’s 25.64 million tonnes.

Refinitiv, which like Kpler tracks vessel movements, has China’s imports from Indonesia somewhat lower in June at 14.96 million tonnes. But the two services agree that this was the second-highest month on record, with Refinitiv data going back to January 2015.

Both agree that China’s imports from Australia have dwindled to near zero from levels around 7-8 million tonnes per month that prevailed up until Beijing’s unofficial ban was imposed in the middle of last year.

China’s total coal imports from all countries in June were 31.55 million tonnes, according to Kpler, and 25.21 million according to Refinitiv.

Australia rebound

But while Australia, the second-biggest exporter of thermal coal and the biggest of coking coal, may have lost the China market, it has been able to find alternatives and the price of its coals have also been rising strongly.

Benchmark high-grade thermal coal with an energy value of 6,000 kcal/kg at the port of Newcastle ended last week at $135.63 a tonne, the highest in 10 years, and up by more than half in just the past two months.

This grade of coal is mainly bought by Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, which rank behind China and India as Asia’s top importers of coal.

Those three countries imported 14.77 million tonnes of all types of coal from Australia in June, according to Kpler, down from May’s 17.05 million, but up strongly from 12.46 million in June 2020.

But the real saviour for Australian coal has been India, which imported a record 7.52 million tonnes of all grades in June, up from 6.61 million in May and just 2.04 million in June 2020.

India tends to buy intermediate grade thermal coal from Australia, which sells at a substantial discount to the 6,000 kcal/kg fuel.

Argus assessed 5,500 kcal/kg coal at Newcastle at $78.29 a tonne on July 2. While this grade has doubled from its 2020 lows, it is still some 42% cheaper than the higher-quality fuel popular with North Asian buyers.

Australia’s coal export volumes have largely recovered from the initial hit caused b the China ban and the loss of demand from the coronavirus pandemic. Kpler assessed June shipments at 31.37 million tonnes of all grades, up from 28.74 million in May and the 27.13 million from November, which was the weakest month in 2020.

So far, 57 percent of Mongolian population above the age of 18 has received the second doses of the Covid-19 vaccines since vaccination rollout started in mid-February. Originally, Mongolia had planned to vaccinate 2 million 67 thousand people above the age of 18, however, since June the country has vaccinated 290 thousand children aged between 12-17 as well as pregnant women.

Unfortunately, the rapid global spread of the Covid-19 Delta Variant is causing serious concern – especially after the first cases of the dangerous mutation were recently registered in Mongolia. Therefore, the Mongolian Government has decided to vaccinate its population with third doses of the vaccines. According to official sources, the third doses will be the AstraZeneca vaccine; the new vaccination rollout will begin in August. The first to receive the third dose will be elderly people above 65 years of age. Then mass vaccination rollout of booster doses will start in October.

On July 11, 1,735 new cases have been detected after conducting tests nationwide within the past 24 hours, reported the Ministry of Health through their Facebook page.

More specifically, 873 new cases were detected in the capital city and 861 cases in rural regions, with one passenger that arrived from abroad testing positive.

As of today, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Mongolia now stands at 137,788. In the past 24 hours, 3,796 patients made recovery, bringing the total recoveries to 103,666.

Furthermore, 11 new COVID-19 related deaths have been reported, raising the country’s death toll to 684. Of the patients currently undergoing treatment at hospitals, there are 8,307 patients in mild, 3,412 in serious, 1,051 in critical, and 227 in very critical condition.