Paris enters the vaccine war and points the finger at other countries. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on Friday accused London of doing “blackmail” with the distribution of the AstraZeneca vaccine against the coronavirus and reproached Moscow for using Sputnik V as a tool of “propaganda and aggressive diplomacy ». Le Drian defended Brussels’ decision to block AstraZeneca’s vaccine exports outside the European Union until the laboratory has fulfilled the contracts acquired with the 27 European partners. “That is called firmness, respect for contracts,” the minister considered in an interview on the France Info radio chain.
The head of French diplomacy accused London of doing “blackmail” with the supply of vaccines against Covid-19 to the European Union and blamed it on the problems that the United Kingdom currently has to give a second dose to the British who already received the first, due to the lack of vials. “You cannot play like that, a bit of blackmail, insofar as they have wanted to vaccinate left and right for the first dose and now they are at a disadvantage for the second,” said the minister.
Le Drian trusted that Brussels and London can reach an agreement soon and that AstraZeneca will fulfill the contracts acquired with the European Union. “It would be amazing if there was a vaccine war between the UK and Europe,” he added.
THE KEY:
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Jean-Yves Le Drian defends the joint purchase of vials by the EU
The minister defended the European Union’s joint vaccine purchase strategy, instead of each country going on its own to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies and having to compete with each other in the world market. “It is a fundamental and beneficial choice for all,” said the French politician, who assured that, “by the end of the year, perhaps even in summer, we will have produced in Europe about 2,500 million doses of the vaccine.” “We Europeans will be the first vaccine producers in the world,” predicted Le Drian.
The Foreign Minister explained that the United Kingdom and France have given an equivalent number of second doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, despite the fact that London is ahead of Paris in terms of the first injection. “We are vaccinated when we have received two doses,” he recalled.
Good rhythm
Since the vaccination campaign began in France at the end of December, 7.1 million citizens have received at least a first dose compared to 28 million Britons. In contrast, the number of fully immunized people is similar in the two countries: 2.7 million in the UK and 2.6 million in France have received two injections, according to official data. London started vaccinating in early December.
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The UK was not the only country in Le Drian’s crosshairs. The minister also reproached Moscow for using the Russian Sputnik V vaccine as a “propaganda” tool. “The way it is managed is more a means of propaganda and aggressive diplomacy than a means of solidarity and humanitarian aid,” he said. Le Drian considers that “China and Russia carry out a policy of influencing through the vaccine before vaccinating their own population.”
The Russian Sputnik V vaccine, which has so far been approved in around fifty countries, is not yet available in France. The French health authorities are waiting for the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to approve its use before starting to use it.
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