West Asia war is not NATO's: UK PM Starmer says he has British national interest in mind
London: Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said that he has vowed to act in the best interest of the United Kingdom amid the West Asia crisis, regardless of the pressure on him and the leaders of the other member-nations of the NATO.
The British PM was speaking to reporters on Wednesday, amid US President Donald Trump's remark that he was strongly considering giving up the US membership of the Organization, reports Deccan Herald.
Stressing that the war in West Asia was not theirs, Starmer said at the press conference at Downing Street, “We will not be drawn into the conflict that is not in our national interests. Whatever the pressure on me and others, whatever the noise, I'm going to act in the British national interest in the decisions that I make.”
In the backdrop of Trump's fresh criticism of the Organization, calling the nations as 'paper tigers', the British PM stood up for the NATO, calling it the single most effective military alliance in the world.
Also, although the US President said that he had held doubts about the credibility of the NATO members for long and felt it was 'beyond reconsideration', Starmer pointed out that the NATO had kept the member-nations safe for many decades. “We are fully committed to NATO,” Starmer added.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
