Vaccines Thru’ Covax: US to give Bangladesh, 15 countries 7m doses
Bangladesh and 15 other Asian countries will receive approximately 70 lakh doses of Covid-19 vaccine out of nearly 1.9 crore doses that will be shared by the US through COVAX, according to a White House fact sheet.
Indian Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu said India will be a "significant recipient" of US Covid-19 vaccines.
The other countries to get these vaccines from the US are Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Maldives, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Laos, Papua New Guinea, Taiwan and the Pacific Islands, the White House fact sheet published late on Thursday said.
US President Joe Biden on Wednesday announced that the US will allocate 75 percent -- nearly 1.9 crore of the first tranche of 2.5 crore doses -- of unused vaccines from its stockpile through the UN-backed COVAX global vaccine sharing programme to countries in South and Southeast Asia as well as Africa.
The first consignment of Covid-19 vaccines from the United States will reach India by the end of June, White House Chief Spokesperson Symone Sanders said on Thursday.
Sanders in a brief statement said US Vice President Kamala D Harris had spoken on the phone with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier that day.
In New Delhi, the statement issued by the Indian PMO said Harris informed Modi about US plans to make Covid-19 vaccines available to other countries, including India, under its "strategy for global vaccine sharing".
However, there was no mention of a timeline in the Indian statement.
Harris also spoke with President Andres Manuel López Obrador of Mexico, President Alejandro Giammattei of Guatemala and Prime Minister Keith Rowley, Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in separate calls.
The vice-president conveyed to each of the leaders "that the Biden-Harris Administration will begin sharing the first 25 million doses of Covid vaccines to their respective countries and others, as part of the Biden-Harris Administration's framework for sharing at least 80 million vaccines globally by the end of June," Sanders said.
Harris "reiterated that the administration's efforts are focused on achieving broad global coverage, responding to surges and other urgent situations and public health needs and helping as many countries as possible who requested vaccines".
"The four leaders thanked the vice-president, and they agreed to continue working together to address Covid-19 and advance our mutual interests around the world," Sanders said.
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