L’EU decided on Wednesday to place under close surveillance the exports of anti-Covid vaccines produced on its soil, in order to prevent the escape to other countries, in particular the United Kingdom, of the doses necessary for Europeans facing the 3rd wave of the pandemic.
Resolve “imbalances”
“The EU is facing a very serious epidemiological situation and continues to export significant volumes to countries” producing their own vaccines or where vaccination is more advanced, said EU Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis. “We have therefore adopted two adjustments to the current mechanism” export control for “Resolve these imbalances” and for ” ensure “ supplies for the Twenty-Seven, he announced at a press conference.
Read also: Covid-19. 29 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine found in Italy during inspection
A system in place by Brussels at the end of January already provided for, before any export of vaccines, the green light from the Member State from which the doses originate and from the Commission. Some 300 authorizations have been issued since, to send 40 million doses to 33 countries – with a single refusal, for a delivery of AstraZeneca to Australia, from Italy.
The European executive intends to tighten export conditions to countries which themselves produce anti-Covid vaccines without sending them back to the EU.
In its revised regulatory text, the Commission notes that some third countries are blocking exports of doses to the EU “Either by law or by contractual or other arrangements made with vaccine manufacturers”. A goal of “Reciprocity” that Brussels intends to oppose to London.
The EU exported some 10 million doses of all vaccines to the UK between February 1 and mid-March, but conversely, it received no doses produced on UK soil – so that the contract signed by AstraZeneca provided for the delivery of doses produced in two factories in the United Kingdom. The company had explained that its contract with London required it to honor British orders as a priority.
Suspended exemptions
Intense discussions are underway between Brussels and London to find a compromise, in particular on the outlets of a factory producing the AstraZeneca vaccine in the Netherlands, and about to be approved by the European regulator to be able to supply the EU.
“In this country, we do not believe in blockages of vaccines or vaccine components, whatever they are”, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson reacted on Tuesday.
Likewise, the EU continues to send doses to countries which do not produce vaccines but whose populations are already widely vaccinated or benefit from a better epidemiological situation, observes the Commission. In that case, “Member States will therefore have to refuse exports accordingly”, according to the revised regulations.
And while the control mechanism previously provided for exceptions for dozens of destinations (low-income countries, some EU neighboring states), all these exemptions are suspended, apart from a handful of micro-states like San Marino, Andorra and the Faroe Islands.
The revised system imposes an examination of almost all exports, to prevent a company “Bypass” a ban, by passing through another country the doses blocked by the EU, said a European source.
Threatened production chains?
Enough to strengthen the pressure on AstraZeneca: the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, had threatened on Saturday to block the exports of the Swedish-British laboratory if the EU did not first receive the promised supplies.
AstraZeneca plans to deliver 70 million doses to Europeans in the second quarter, against 180 million provided for in the contract signed with the EU, after having provided only a third of the deliveries promised in the first quarter. However, the Italian press reported on Tuesday the recent discovery of a stock of 29 million doses of AstraZeneca on a finishing site in Italy, enough to fuel the mistrust of Europeans.
Tighter export controls are dividing the Twenty-Seven.
France and Germany are in favor, like the Italy of Mario Draghi who called on Wednesday to “Fully use” mechanism and require laboratories to “Fully honor their contractual commitments”.
Conversely, Belgium and the Netherlands, where the pharmaceutical industry is very present, are alarmed at possible retaliatory measures elsewhere in the world, which could hamper supply chains for the production of vaccines.
For its part, Dublin said it was fiercely opposed to everything “Blocking” full export.
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