Review of Major World Historical Events (2020)

This document records a series of important events that occurred in various countries around the world on Earth, documented on the blockchain month by month, focusing on significant events, only recording without evaluation.

January

An unknown pneumonia event was reported in Wuhan, People's Republic of China;
India announced the approval of its third lunar mission, "Chandrayaan-3," after the recent failure of its last lunar landing mission, which will carry a lander and rover but no orbiter;
The international academic journal "Environmental Science" published a research paper estimating that the Yangtze giant softshell turtle, once the king of freshwater fish in the People's Republic of China, went extinct between 2005 and 2010;
Qasem Soleimani, commander of Iran's Quds Force, was killed in a U.S. drone strike near Baghdad International Airport, prompting the Iranian government to declare it would take retaliatory measures;
NASA announced that the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite discovered a planet, TOI-700 d, located only 100 light-years from Earth and similar in size, potentially having water and situated in the habitable zone;
An expert group established by the Chinese government determined that the unknown pneumonia in Wuhan was caused by a novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), closely related to the culprits of SARS and MERS;
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran launched dozens of ballistic missiles at the U.S. military base at Al Asad in Iraq as retaliation for the U.S. assassination on January 3;
A Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800 aircraft disintegrated and crashed shortly after taking off from Tehran, Iran, resulting in the deaths of all 176 people on board;
The Republic of China held its 15th presidential and 10th legislative elections, with Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party defeating Han Kuo-yu of the Kuomintang to secure re-election. The party also gained a majority in the Legislative Yuan;
The spherical radio telescope known as the "Sky Eye" (FAST) in the People's Republic of China successfully passed national acceptance and began official operations;
Microsoft ended all technical support for the Windows 7 operating system;
The National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China announced that pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus would be classified as a legally mandated Category B infectious disease, managed as a Category A disease;
The Wuhan Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia Epidemic Prevention and Control Command announced early on January 23 that Wuhan would begin a lockdown starting at 10 a.m. on January 23;
To combat the spread of the novel coronavirus pneumonia, more than ten cities in Hubei Province, including the provincial capital Wuhan, implemented lockdown measures;
Boeing's 777X, equipped with the world's largest twin-engine GE9X jet engine, successfully completed its first test flight;
Kobe Bryant, a long-time player for the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA, tragically died in a helicopter crash in California at the age of 41;
The U.S. Department of Justice announced that Harvard University chemistry department chair Charles Lieber was charged with secretly assisting the People's Republic of China in stealing U.S. technology, allegedly related to the "Thousand Talents Program";
The European Parliament voted to formally sign the Brexit agreement with 621 votes in favor, 49 against, and 13 abstentions. Diplomats from EU member states approved the agreement in writing on the 30th;
The World Health Organization announced in the evening that the novel coronavirus pneumonia outbreak originating from Wuhan, People's Republic of China, constituted "an international public health emergency of concern";
As the novel coronavirus pneumonia epidemic spread in mainland China, the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs updated its travel advisory for mainland China, raising it to the most severe Level 4: "Do Not Travel."

February

After the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union, the number of Members of the European Parliament decreased from 751 to 705;
The UK government announced a ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars starting in 2035 to reduce air pollution, five years earlier than originally planned, to help the UK achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050;
Li Wenliang, an ophthalmologist in Wuhan known as the "whistleblower" of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), died from pneumonia after being infected during the epidemic prevention process;
To combat COVID-19, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government announced that all individuals entering from mainland People's Republic of China (including Hong Kong residents and foreign travelers) would be subject to mandatory quarantine for 14 days, during which they could not leave Hong Kong;
The South Korean film "Parasite" created a new chapter in Oscar history by winning four major awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Feature Film;
The World Health Organization dispatched a team of epidemiologists to the front lines in mainland China to study the novel coronavirus. This team will be led by Canadian expert Bruce Aylward;
The National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China reported that the cumulative death toll from the novel coronavirus reached 1,017, marking the first time the number of deaths exceeded one thousand since the outbreak began;
The World Health Organization (WHO) officially named the novel coronavirus disease (2019-nCoV), first confirmed in the People's Republic of China on December 31, 2019, as COVID-19;
The U.S. Department of Justice charged Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei Technologies with 16 new counts, including conspiracy to commit fraud and conspiracy to steal trade secrets;
The latest report from "World Population Review," based in the U.S., indicated that India surpassed the UK and France in 2019 to become the world's fifth-largest economy;
Russia announced an indefinite ban on the entry of citizens from the People's Republic of China starting at midnight on the 20th Moscow time, citing the country's "deteriorating epidemic situation";
The Court of Arbitration for Sport officially released the hearing decision in the case of the World Anti-Doping Agency against Chinese swimmer Sun Yang and the International Swimming Federation, imposing an eight-year ban on Sun Yang, effective immediately.

March

The U.S. Federal Reserve urgently announced a 50 basis point (0.5%) cut in the federal funds rate, lowering the benchmark interest rate range to 1%-1.25% in response to the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic;
The three major U.S. stock indices opened with a sharp decline, with the S&P 500 index dropping 7%, triggering the first level of circuit breaker, while the Dow Jones index also fell nearly 1,900 points, triggering a circuit breaker and temporarily halting trading for 15 minutes;
The World Health Organization declared that the outbreak of COVID-19 constituted a global "pandemic." It has swept through at least 114 countries and regions, resulting in over 4,000 deaths;
To prevent the nationwide spread of COVID-19, U.S. President Trump announced in the afternoon that the U.S. would enter a "national emergency." Trump also promised to use $50 billion in federal emergency funds;
In response to the economic impact of the pandemic, the U.S. Federal Reserve announced a 100 basis point (1%) cut in the benchmark interest rate to a range of 0%-0.25% and launched a $700 billion quantitative easing program;
U.S. stocks triggered a circuit breaker for the fourth time this month, with the Dow Jones index closing down 1,338.46 points, a drop of 6.3%, to 19,898.92 points, falling below the 20,000-point mark;
The well-known adult magazine "Playboy" announced that due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, its print magazine would cease publication, with the Spring 2020 issue being the last;
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that due to the rampant COVID-19 pandemic, the Tokyo 2020 Olympics would be postponed for one year, to be held no later than next summer.

April

In response to the request of the Bank of England, HSBC Holdings and Standard Chartered Group suspended dividends and share buybacks. HSBC's stock price plummeted by 9.5%, closing at 39.95, a new low since the 2009 financial crisis;
Buckingham Palace announced that Queen Elizabeth II had recorded a special address regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, which would be broadcast nationwide on television at 8 p.m., marking her fourth special address;
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's condition worsened, and he was moved to intensive care, asking Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab to temporarily take over government duties;
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the city of Wuhan in Hubei Province, which had been under lockdown for 76 days, was lifted on this day;
The Long March 3B rocket carrying the Indonesian PALAPA-N1 communication satellite failed to reach orbit and ultimately crashed, marking the second rocket launch failure for the People's Republic of China this year;
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced in the evening that the state of emergency would be expanded from the originally designated seven prefectures to the entire country; he also announced that the government would provide 100,000 yen in cash to every citizen;
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures in the New York market fell to -$40.32 per barrel at one point, with a settlement price of -$37.63, far below the lowest price recorded since monthly data began in 1946;
The U.S. Pentagon unusually released three videos of U.S. Navy personnel encountering "unidentified flying objects" (UFOs), confirming that the three widely circulated UFO videos were authentic;
A study published in the journal "Nature" indicated that if the People's Republic of China had not concealed the infectious nature of COVID-19 upon learning of it, the global spread of the pandemic could have been reduced by 95%.

May

Der Spiegel reported that Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke with WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on January 21, requesting to suppress information about human-to-human transmission of the virus and delaying the global pandemic warning;
The newly established U.S. Space Force's flag made its debut at the White House, marking the first new military service flag in over 70 years;
The Republic of China held its 15th presidential inauguration ceremony, with President Tsai Ing-wen delivering an inaugural speech reiterating the eight words "peace, point-to-point, democracy, dialogue" regarding cross-strait relations;
Following KFC and Starbucks, global food giant Nestlé announced it would invest over 100 million Swiss francs to expand its factory in Tianjin to produce plant-based meat, with related products set to launch by the end of this year;
U.S. telecommunications operator AT&T's WarnerMedia officially launched its new streaming service "HBO Max";
The National People's Congress passed a decision to establish and improve the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for safeguarding national security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;
U.S. President Trump stated at a press conference that he would order the cancellation of the U.S. special trade status for Hong Kong, sanction Chinese and Hong Kong officials, and withdraw from the World Health Organization;
NASA and SpaceX successfully launched the crewed version of the "Dragon" spacecraft, sending two astronauts to the International Space Station, marking the first time the U.S. has independently conducted such a mission in nine years;
Protests erupted in over 30 cities across the U.S. against the death of African American man George Floyd, who died after a white police officer knelt on his neck, with some protests escalating into riots. Many cities announced curfews.

June

The U.S. Department of Transportation announced that starting June 16, all regularly scheduled passenger flights operated by Chinese airlines between China and the U.S. would be suspended, citing "the inability to exercise all aspects of bilateral rights";
Derek Chauvin, the U.S. police officer responsible for the death of George Floyd, was charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter, with prosecutors later adding a second-degree murder charge; the three other officers present were also charged;
The Hong Kong police, citing concerns over the spread of the pneumonia epidemic, invoked emergency laws to restrict gatherings, issuing a ban on this year's memorial activities for the "June Fourth" incident, interrupting the candlelight vigil for the first time in 30 years;
A COVID-19 outbreak occurred at the Xinfadi agricultural products wholesale market in Beijing in 2020;
In the Galwan Valley, a disputed border area between China and India on the southwestern side of the Himalayas, a large-scale "hand-to-hand combat" broke out between Chinese and Indian troops overnight, resulting in multiple casualties;
Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced on Twitter that SpaceX is building a floating super-heavy spaceport for missions to Mars, the Moon, and supersonic travel on Earth;
Japanese scholars released a post-World War II government document, reportedly confirming for the first time that the Japanese military's Unit 731 was ordered to produce bacteria, which has significant historical implications;
The last satellite of China's BeiDou-3 global satellite navigation system successfully launched from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. The BeiDou navigation system will provide global services, six months ahead of the original schedule;
Chunghwa Telecom officially announced the activation of "Chunghwa Telecom 5G";
The Hong Kong version of the National Security Law officially took effect.

July

Electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla's stock price soared, surpassing Toyota to become the world's most valuable car manufacturer;
The implementation rules for Article 43 of the Hong Kong National Security Law officially took effect;
The 2020 Singapore general election was held, marking the 18th election since independence, with the People's Action Party, represented by Lee Hsien Loong, winning with 61.24% of the vote;
U.S. President Trump officially signed the Hong Kong Autonomy Act;
The vaccine jointly developed by Oxford University and British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca entered the third phase of clinical trials. According to the World Health Organization, a total of 23 vaccines are currently in this stage globally;
The COVID-19 pandemic caused the largest economic crisis in Europe since World War II, with the EU passing a €750 billion recovery plan, the largest relief package in EU history, to assist severely impacted member states in boosting their economies;
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China notified the U.S. to close its consulate in Chengdu;
TSMC's stock price opened with a limit-up, driving the Taiwan stock market to a historical high of 12,686 points. Its global market value surpassed Walmart, becoming the 11th largest company, setting a new record;
The COVID-19 vaccine jointly developed by Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech has entered the final stage of human trials. The two companies stated that they expect to supply 100 million doses to the market by the end of the year;
The international collaborative artificial sun ITER reactor officially entered its final five years of assembly in France, with plasma testing scheduled for 2025;
Bloomberg reported that Apple acquired Canadian startup Mobeewave, which developed technology to turn smartphones into mobile payment POS systems, allowing the iPhone to become a cash register.

August

The United Arab Emirates became the first Arab country to activate a nuclear power plant. The plant, designed by Korea Electric Power Corporation, can meet 25% of the country's electricity needs if all four units operate;
A massive explosion occurred in the port industrial area of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, resulting in at least 137 deaths and over 5,000 injuries;
A series of papers published today in the journal "Nature" revealed that Ceres, located between Mars and Jupiter, has an underground salty ocean;
U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo announced that the Confucius Institute U.S. Center would be designated as a foreign mission, as it is part of the People's Republic of China's propaganda machine;
Digital renminbi was officially piloted in mainland China;
The U.S. Department of Commerce announced it would expand restrictions on Huawei, cutting off the company's access to commercial chips, and confirmed it would not extend the temporary general license allowing U.S. companies to engage with Huawei.

September

The Singapore Exchange (SGX) announced it is collaborating with British firm CryptoCompare to launch the first cryptocurrency indices—the iEdge Bitcoin Index and the iEdge Ethereum Index;
The U.S. Department of Defense's 2020 report on China's military power indicated that the People's Liberation Army may adopt four operational routes against Taiwan: maritime and aerial blockades, limited military suppression, aerial and missile attacks, and invasion;
Intel officially unveiled its 11th generation Core series laptop processors based on the Tiger Lake microarchitecture design with a 10-nanometer process;
NVIDIA reached an agreement with SoftBank Group to acquire Arm Holdings for $40 billion. This deal will combine NVIDIA and ARM architectures, creating a leading computing company for the AI era;
Astronomers discovered phosphine in the acidic clouds of Venus, suggesting possible signs of life. NASA stated this is the most significant development in the search for extraterrestrial life;
The global cumulative number of confirmed COVID-19 cases surpassed 30 million;
The U.S. Department of Commerce announced that starting September 20, downloads of the Chinese Tencent-owned WeChat communication app and ByteDance's overseas short video app TikTok would be banned;
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin publicly stated at a press conference that "there is no so-called median line in the Taiwan Strait";
HSBC Holdings' stock price fell below the 2009 century offering price of 28 yuan, reaching a low of 27.5 yuan, the lowest since May 1995.

October

U.S. President Trump announced on Twitter that he and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for COVID-19 and would immediately begin isolation and treatment;
The U.S. Department of Defense's Space Development Agency (SDA) announced that SpaceX won a $149 million contract to produce missile tracking satellites for the U.S. Department of Defense;
Apple's newly launched iPhone 12 mini is the smallest, lightest, and thinnest 5G smartphone ever, featuring a 5.4-inch screen, yet lighter than the iPhone 8 with a 4.7-inch screen;
NASA announced that eight national space agencies, including the U.S., signed the Artemis Accords, aiming to reach a consensus on exploring the lunar surface by 2024;
Cathay Pacific announced significant layoffs of 8,500 employees, including 5,300 from Hong Kong, and that its 35-year-old subsidiary, Dragonair, would cease operations immediately;
Chile held a citizen vote to decide whether to draft a new constitution to replace the one established during the Pinochet era.

November

Mainland China conducted its seventh national population census;
The 2020 U.S. presidential election was held, with all House seats and one-third of Senate seats up for election. The presidential candidates from the two major parties, Democrat Biden and Republican Trump, were in a tight race;
Ant Group announced it would simultaneously postpone its A+H share (mainland and Hong Kong) listing. Ant Group is the parent company of Alipay, originally scheduled to go public on the 5th, raising over $34.5 billion;
In the evening, after surpassing the threshold of 270 electoral votes, Democratic candidate Biden delivered a speech declaring his election as the 46th president of the United States;
Apple announced that its first Apple Silicon processor for Mac devices would officially be named Apple M1;
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress passed an amendment to increase the qualification requirements for Hong Kong Legislative Council members, leading the Hong Kong government to announce the disqualification of four members, including Liang Guichang. Other pro-democracy lawmakers announced their collective resignation in protest;
The PlayStation 5 was launched first in North America, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, with a global release on the 19th;
The ten ASEAN countries and countries including China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand signed the world's largest trade agreement, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), with a tariff elimination rate of 91%, covering 30% of global GDP;
SpaceX launched the Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft, sending four astronauts to the International Space Station. This was SpaceX's first crewed mission to the ISS;
The North American telecommunications organization ATIS established a 6G communication technology alliance named Next G Alliance, inviting 27 major companies, including Google and Apple, to join in joint development, while excluding Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE;
Pfizer announced that it had applied to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for emergency use authorization for its COVID-19 vaccine;
China's Chang'e 5 mission successfully launched, tasked with sampling the lunar surface and returning to Earth. If successful, China will become the third country to obtain lunar samples after the U.S. and the former Soviet Union;
U.S. Moderna announced that it would apply to the FDA and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for emergency use authorization for its COVID-19 vaccine.

December

American Airlines completed a test flight with media reporters on a Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, marking a significant step toward restoring commercial service after a 20-month grounding;
The Trump administration officially blacklisted chip manufacturer SMIC and oil giant CNOOC, citing alleged ties to the Chinese military;
"Science" published that China's "Jiuzhang" quantum computing prototype, with 76 qubits, is claimed to be 100 billion times faster than Google's 53-qubit "Sycamore processor" released last year;
The U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions against all 14 current vice-chairpersons of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, including Wang Chen, after the Chinese National People's Congress disqualified four Hong Kong Legislative Council members;
Taking the lead globally, the UK began administering the first batch of Pfizer and BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine;
The FDA's expert panel (VRBPAC) voted 17 in favor, 4 against, and 1 abstention, recommending the approval of the Pfizer vaccine for emergency use in individuals aged 16 and older;
The electoral college in each U.S. state formally voted, confirming Biden's 306 votes against Trump's 232 votes, electing him as the 46th president;
The FDA's expert panel (VRBPAC) voted overwhelmingly 20 to 0, with 1 abstention, to approve the emergency use authorization for the Moderna vaccine, which has an efficacy rate of 94.1%;
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress passed the Yangtze River Protection Law, the first law to protect a specific river. It also passed an amendment to the Criminal Law, lowering the minimum age for criminal responsibility for violent crimes from 14 to 12;
China and the European Union announced a political agreement on a "comprehensive investment agreement"; China will open its market to EU investors, expected to take effect as early as early 2022;
The State Council of the People's Republic of China announced that the inactivated COVID-19 vaccine developed by China National Pharmaceutical Group's Beijing Institute of Biological Products has been approved for conditional marketing, making it the first COVID-19 vaccine to be marketed in mainland China.