- Revelers ready to party without pandemic restrictions
- Some fireworks will be held for the first time since 2019
- Germany’s Olaf Scholz calls for more unity in his New Year’s message
- Natural disasters and conflict will lead to muted celebrations in parts of the world, including Ukraine
All updates in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).
New Year celebrations around the world
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0500: Despite the sometimes horrendous weather, tens of thousands of people thronged New York’s Times Square.
It’s the first major New Year’s gathering without restrictions in Times Square.
Party-goers watched the world-famous ball drop while counting down to the New Year.
South of the border, Mexico also celebrated New Years, which means that 2023 is really underway in North America.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is set to receive US President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Mexico in just over a week for the summit of North American leaders.
0400: The year 2023 has reached the Caribbean.
Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada and Haiti ring in the new year.
US President Joe Biden is also celebrating the year 2023, just ahead of the rest of his country. Biden and his wife Jill arrived in St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands on Tuesday to celebrate the New Year with their family.
The New Year has also begun in the easternmost parts of Canada.
0300: The revelers celebrated the start of the New Year on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro.
Fireworks on Copacabana Beach in Rio de JaneiroImage: Aline Massuca/Portal
Brazil is also expecting the inauguration of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in a few hours. Also, football fans gather in Santos on Monday to bid farewell to Pele, the country’s most famous football export.
Lula’s swearing-in will cap a remarkable political comeback for the 77-year-old, who returns to the presidential palace in Brasilia less than five years after being jailed on controversial, now-cleared, corruption charges.
Around 300,000 people are expected to attend the ceremony and a massive concert that will feature acts ranging from samba legend Martinho da Vila to drag queen Pabllo Vittar.
Other South American nations ringing in the New Year include Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay.
London greeted the new year with a 12-minute fireworks displayImage: Aaron Chown/dpa/Picture Alliance
0000: The UK and Republic of Ireland saw the New Year in with huge fireworks displays in London, Manchester, Cardiff and Edinburgh – where the annual Hogmanay party is in full swing. Dublin’s exhibition on North Wall Quay attracted around 16,000 revelers.
In his New Year’s message, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak admitted that the country had had a tough 12 months due to political and economic problems and its problems will not “go away” in 2023.
But he believed that the coronation of King Charles III. in May will help bring the country together.
It has also just become 2023 in Iceland, Portugal and the Spanish Canary Islands.
In Africa, countries ringing in the New Year include Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso and Senegal.
2306: An hour into 2023, Ukraine reports new explosions around its capital, Kyiv.
Kyiv city and region officials said in the Telegram messaging app that the air defense systems were working.
It was not immediately known if any targets were hit.
2300: It’s officially 2023 in Berlin, Paris, Madrid, Rome, Stockholm, Belgrade and Warsaw and other European capitals.
Several African countries, including Morocco, Algeria, Nigeria, Ghana and Angola, are also welcoming in the New Year.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in his New Year’s speech that 2022 was not “just a year of war, suffering and sorrow”. He said the government is making “our country and Europe independent of Russian gas in the long term” and vowed to continue aid to Ukraine.
Scholz’ New Year’s speech focuses on Ukraine
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Berlin hotels reported 90% occupancy ahead of midnight fireworks at the Brandenburg Gate – the first since the pandemic.
President Emmanuel Macron also pledged France’s continued support for Ukraine “until victory”. He urged the French public to continue their energy-saving efforts but warned that 2023 would be the year in which pension reform would be implemented.
Around half a million people have gathered for the first New Year’s fireworks in Paris since 2019.
Sweden takes over the EU’s rotating presidency on Sunday and vowed to negotiate a joint EU response to COVID testing for travelers from China amid concerns over the explosion of infections in the country next week.
Midnight in Zagreb was also the moment when Croatia abandoned its kuna currency and adopted the euro, becoming the 20th member of the eurozone.
2200: A curfew is in effect in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv tonight as it marks the start of 2023. Russia has recently ramped up its attacks on Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, leading to stay-at-home orders.
Several Kiev residents lit sparklers next to a Christmas tree before the night curfew. Image: Valentyn Ogirenko/Portal
Before midnight, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said 2023 was the “year of our victory”.
“Are you wishing for miracles today? Ukrainians have been creating them for a long time,” he wrote on Telegram, posting a photo of himself and his wife Olena in front of a decently decorated Christmas tree.
Other nations now ringing in the New Year include Egypt, Libya, Zimbabwe and South Africa.
2100: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain welcomed the new year, along with Moscow, Russia and several East African countries including Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia.
Iran marked the beginning of 2023 half an hour earlier.
2000: The United Arab Emirates, including the playground for affluent Dubai, has just welcomed 2023. Dubai is home to the tallest building in the world, Burj Khalifa, which hosted an amazing fireworks display.
1900: India has entered the new year. People gathered with friends and family to celebrate in Mumbai.
People gathered on Mumbai’s seafront to welcome the New YearCredit: Punit Paranjpe/AFP/Getty Images
1800: Croatia will adopt the euro as its currency and join the Schengen area in 2023.
Croatia, which joined the EU in 2013, will abandon the kuna currency and join the bloc’s free movement zone at midnight local time (2300 GMT).
Meanwhile, dozens of cities in the western Balkans canceled New Year’s fireworks amid concerns about the harmful effects of noise and gases on animals and people.
The capital Zagreb replaced its fireworks show with confetti, visual effects and music, and the southwestern port city of Rijeka wanted to divert fireworks funds to animal welfare organizations.
The southwestern Croatian town of Fuzine has been celebrating its New Year celebrations at noon for more than 20 years. Image: Goran Kovacic/PIXSELL/picture alliance
The town of Fuzine in south-west Croatia celebrated New Year’s Day at noon, a tradition dating back just over 20 years.
1700: According to the Chinese lunar calendar, 2023 will be the year of the rabbit.
The lunar new year begins on January 22nd.
According to the Chinese lunar calendar, 2023 will be the year of the rabbitImage: CFOTO/Picture Alliance
It is now past midnight in Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam, which celebrate both the solar and lunar new years.
1500: Chinese President Xi Jinping said his country was “on the right side of history” in his New Year’s address.
He said that “the world is not at peace,” but that Beijing will “steadfastly stand up for peace and development.”
China’s leader said the country is entering a “new phase” in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Chinese authorities scrapped the country’s zero-COVID policy in early December.
The city of Huai’an in eastern Jiangsu Province held a light show over its West Tour Park. Image: CFOTO/Picture Alliance
Meanwhile, celebrations are taking place at the Great Wall of China in Beijing.
In Shanghai, authorities said traffic along the Bund is being halted to allow pedestrians to congregate.
However, they said no formal activities would take place there. The Bund was the scene of a deadly stampede on New Year’s Eve 2014. Some 36 people died after hundreds of thousands gathered to celebrate.
Shanghai Disneyland will also hold a fireworks display to celebrate the New Year.
Australia’s largest city held fireworks over the Harbor Bridge to celebrate the New YearImage: Bianca De Marchi/AAP/dpa/Picture Alliance
1300: The Australian city of Sydney put on a night to remember with a dazzling display of fireworks at midnight sharp.
Organizers predicted that after two years of pandemic restrictions and muted celebrations, a crowd of more than a million people would gather in the city’s port area.
“We’ve had a pretty difficult few years; we’re delighted to be welcoming people again this year,” Stephen Gilby, producer of Big Events in the City, told The Sydney Morning Herald.
1100: The island nations of Samoa and New Zealand celebrated the countdown to 2023. In Auckland, large crowds squeezed under the Sky Tower, where a countdown to midnight gave way to fireworks.
An hour earlier, the Line Islands in Kiribati Atoll were among the first places on the planet to welcome the New Year.
These live updates are now complete.
lo,mm,kb/ar,wd,dj (Portal, AP, dpa)