Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu tour a military gear exhibition before the annual meeting of the Defence Ministry board in Moscow on December 21, 2021. (Photo by Mikhail Metzel/TASS/Kremlin/Sputnik/AFP Photo)
In this image provided by the Ukrainian Board Guard Press Office, Ukrainian border guards watch as a special vehicle digs a trench on the Ukraine-Russia border close to Sumy, Ukraine, Tuesday, December 21, 2021. (Photo by Ukrainian Board Guard Press Office via AP Photo)
A Russian soldier takes part in drills at the Kadamovskiy firing range in the Rostov region in southern Russia, Wednesday, December 22, 2021. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says that Russian and U.S. negotiators will sit down for talks early next year to discuss Moscow’s demand for Western guarantees precluding NATO’s expansion to Ukraine. (Photo by AP Photo/Stringer)
Anti-COVID-19 green pass protesters gathered outside the Palace of Parliament are joined by a band of people wearing bear furs and performing New Year rituals in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, December 21, 2021. People gathered to protest agains the introduction of the COVID-19 “green certificate” in work places, a measure considered by authorities to limit the coronavirus infections. (Photo by Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo)
In this photo released by China’s Xinhua News Agency, a worker wearing a protective suit collects a throat swab sample at a COVID-19 testing site in Xi’an in northwestern China’s Shaanxi Province, Tuesday, December 21, 2021. China on Wednesday ordered millions of people locked down in neighborhoods and workplaces in the northern city of Xi’an following a spike in coronavirus cases. (Photo by Li Yibo/Xinhua via AP Photo)
A woman wears a face covering as she passes a Christmas lights, in London, Wednesday, December 22, 2021. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday that his government reserves the “possibility of taking further action” to protect public health as Omicron spreads across the country. (Photo by Frank Augstein/AP Photo)
People wearing face masks ride a tram in Lisbon, Wednesday, December 22, 2021. Despite vaccination rates that make other governments envious, Spain and Iberian neighbor Portugal are facing the hard truth that, with the new omicron variant running rampant, these winter holidays won’t be a time of unrestrained joy. Portugal announced Tuesday a slew of new restrictions over Christmas and the New Year. (Photo by Armando Franca/AP Photo)
A nurse prepares a booster Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine against COVID-19, in Athens, Greece, Wednesday, December 22, 2021. Public health authorities in Greece have stepped up a campaign to deliver booster shots to seniors and people with mobility difficulties at home – with one agency outside Athens hiring taxis to take healthcare workers to where the vaccinations are needed. (Photo by Thanassis Stavrakis/AP Photo)
People wearing face masks to curb the spread of coronavirus enjoy the Christmas lights in downtown Madrid, Spain, Wednesday, December 22, 2021. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is convening a special Cabinet meeting Thursday to pass a decree-law that makes it mandatory to wear masks outdoors, amid a record surge in COVID-19 cases. (Photo by Manu Fernandez/AP Photo)
Hugo Chappaz, 9, displays his vaccination diploma at the National Velodrome in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, west of Paris, France, Wednesday, December 22, 2021. Schoolchildren clung nervously to their parents as they entered a vast vaccinodrome west of Paris, then walked proudly away with a “vaccination diploma” as France kicked off mass vaccinations of children age 5 to 11. (Photo by Michel Euler/AP Photo)
People wear a protective face mask in front of a store in the City Center in Mannheim, Germany, 21 December 2021. On 21 December, the German government will decide about new measures to curb the spread of the Omicron Covid-19 variant. (Photo by Ronald Wittek/EPA/EFE)
This aerial photograph taken on December 22, 2021 shows the erupting Piton de la Fournaise volcano on the French Indian Ocean island of Reunion. The Piton de la Fournaise, the volcano of Reunion, erupted for the second time of the year on December 22 at 3:30 am (12:30 am in Paris), indicates the volcanological observatory. At least three eruptive cracks have opened on the southern flank of the volcano in the enclosure (the central caldera of the volcano), volcanologists have noted. The eruption takes place in a totally uninhabited area. (Photo by Richard Bouhet/AFP Photo)
Students from Madrid’s San Ildefonso school sing out the winning Christmas lottery number 86148 at Madrid’s Teatro Real opera house during Spain’s bumper Christmas lottery draw known as El Gordo, or The Fat One, in Madrid, Spain, Wednesday, December 22, 2021. The draw, held annually since 1812, will dish out a total of 2.4 billion euros ($2.7 billion) in prizes this year. People can queue for hours in the days running up to the lottery to snatch their 20-euro tickets from the most popular vendors. (Photo by Bernat Armangue/AP Photo)
The Gomez Resendiz family applauds after placing a giant statue of Baby Jesus as preparations for Christmas celebrations, at the plaza of the Iztapalapa borough of Mexico City, Tuesday, December 21, 2021. (Photo by Marco Ugarte/AP Photo)
A climber disguised as Santa Claus goes down a paediatric clinic building in Ljubljana on December 22, 2021. (Photo by Jure Makovec/AFP Photo)
People in costume participate in the Montol Festival on December 21, 2021 in Penzance, England. Montol is a six-day arts and community festival organised by the Cornish Culture Association that celebrates the midwinter solstice and Cornish Christmas traditions, culminating in costumed parades on December 21st. The event, which began in 2007, was cancelled in 2020 due to Covid concerns but resumed this year. (Photo by Hugh Hastings/Getty Images)
Residents of Mosman decorate their homes with lights in celebration of Christmas on December 21, 2021 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)
A festive yarn bomb on the top of a Royal Mail post box in Salisbury, Wiltshire in South West England on Wednesday, December 22, 2021. (Photo by Andrew Matthews/PA Images via Getty Images)
