Biden plans to turn the tables on Chinese vaccine diplomacy 3
US State Department officials have recently continuously received requests for vaccine support from other countries.
Even though they have received large amounts of vaccines from China and Russia, many countries still continuously request to receive as much support as possible from the US and Europe to fight the pandemic.
Increasingly wary of Beijing and Moscow’s `vaccine diplomacy` efforts to promote relations with countries eager to start vaccination programs, as well as the fact that the US is getting closer to the time when it can vaccinate everyone.
President Joe Biden at the White House on April 2.
On April 5, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the appointment of Gayle Smith, former director of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), in charge of coordinating the international response to Covid-19.
The decision to appoint Ms. Smith is a sign that the Biden administration is ready to consider sharing vaccines with other countries, after a long time of devoting resources to prioritizing vaccination of the American people, according to a White House official.
US diplomats said they will discuss internally in the coming weeks about where the US should send excess Covid-19 vaccines, based on a variety of factors such as US interests in different regions and the extent of the epidemic.
Competing with China, a country that has shared vaccines with dozens of countries around the world, will be a big challenge, according to US officials.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on April 5 that rich countries must help poor countries accelerate vaccination campaigns, and warned that failure to prevent Covid-19 abroad will worsen inequality and
`If we do not act now, the world will be increasingly affected by the deep divide between rich and poor countries,` she said.
The US has announced its own financial commitments to vaccine production and distribution organizations in developing countries, including $4 billion for the United Nations’ Covax, and pledged to support the expansion of vaccine production.
Washington has also provided stockpiled batches of the AstraZeneca vaccine, not yet approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), to Mexico and Canada, after the leaders of these two countries proposed to President Biden in meetings.
The US government has purchased more vaccine doses than needed to vaccinate the entire population, with multiple orders for existing vaccines including Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca.
`Why isn’t it time for us to share vaccines with every country in the world? Partly because we need to have a plan for what’s to come,` White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on April 5, citing
However, Ms. Psaki also said last week that discussions about vaccine sharing `will happen eventually.`
A Pew Research Center survey in February said that 66% of American adults believe the government should ensure enough vaccines for the people, even though this may cause developing countries to wait for a long time for vaccine supplies.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration sees the unpredictable nature of viruses, as they continuously mutate and spread in the US, as the main reason why the country has to reserve vaccines instead of sharing.
However, Biden also pledged to share vaccines with countries.
A Covid-19 vaccination site in Pacoima, California in January. Photo: AP.
It is unclear what percentage of Americans will wait to complete the vaccination program before starting to share vaccines with other countries, but discussions on this issue are expected to take place within a few days or several.
Smith, the new coordinator, will hold interagency discussions to decide how vaccine sharing will happen and when the administration is ready to do so.
`As we become more and more confident about the amount of vaccine available domestically, we will consider many options to share with other countries,` Secretary of State Blinken said at the State Department on April 5 when announcing the addition.
US national security officials also acknowledged the diplomatic, strategic and medical value that sharing vaccines with foreign countries brings.
The US Secretary of State said on April 5 that Washington would not `trade injections for political gain`, but did not provide details about the administration’s plans to share vaccines with foreign countries.
Blinken also outlined other `core values` that he believes should guide the State Department’s plans for vaccines.
