EU to discuss US vaccine patent plan in today’s summit

A woman receives an injection of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine at the Zagreb Fair on Wednesday. Pic/AFP

European Union leaders said Thursday that in the wake of the US backing patent waivers for Covid-19 vaccine technology, the 27-nation bloc immediately will start discussing whether they should join such a move.

The leaders' first opportunity to mould a common view will come as soon as a two-day summit in Porto, Portugal, that starts Friday.

Ursula von der Leyen, EU Commission president

While many insist that waiving patents would only go part way toward making vaccines available and likely in the midterm only, French President Emmanuel Macron said he "completely" supports opening up intellectual property protections for Covid-19 vaccines as "a global public good".

At the same time, Macron insisted that the immediate priority for wealthier countries should be first donating more vaccine doses to poorer countries.

The move to support waiving intellectual property protections on vaccines under World Trade Organisation rules marked a dramatic shift for the United States, which had previously lined up with many other developed nations opposed to the idea floated by India and South Africa.

While the EU did not echo the US position, it generally welcomed President Joe Biden's move.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that "We are ready to discuss how the US proposal for waiver on intellectual property protection for Covid-19 vaccines could help end the crisis."

Von der Leyen said in a video address Thursday, though, that other issues should take center stage. "In the short run...we call upon all vaccine-producing countries to allow exports and to avoid measures that disrupt supply chains," she said.

She was hinting at so-called vaccine nationalism that has limited or made nonexistent any exports from nations including Britain and the United States, while the 27-nation bloc was allowing the export of millions of doses to countries around the world.

Many hope the initiative of the Biden administration will help poorer countries get more doses and speed the end of the pandemic.

Left Co-President Manon Aubry called Biden's move a game-changer. The European Union is now the last place in the world to protect big pharma's profits over public health.

Greens President Ska Keller said Biden's opening made sure "there can be no more excuses from the European Union." She called on the EU "to support this historic initiative and make global solidarity a reality".

Philippines to return donated Chinese vaccine

Ashia Rivers, 17, of Maryland, gets her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine in her family car at Ripken Baseball. Pic/AFP

The president of the Philippines is asking China to take back 1,000 doses of donated Sinopharm vaccine after facing criticism for receiving a shot even though it has not yet been authorised for public use in the country. The Philippine health secretary injected Duterte with the vaccine Monday. An unspecified number of Duterte's guards have also been injected with the Sinopharm vaccine in secrecy. The president apologized but says his use of the Chinese vaccine was recommended by his doctors and did not breach any regulation because it was covered by a ‘compassionate use' exemption. Critics, however, say Duterte made a mockery of vaccine regulations while ordinary Filipinos have struggled with a plethora of pandemic restrictions.

6,85,508
No. of new cases reported globally in the past 24 hours

15,46,40,649
Total no. of cases worldwide

32,32,285
Total no. of deaths worldwide

Source: WHO/Johns Hopkins

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