French President Macron Criticizes AstraZeneca Efficacy: "Ineffective for Those Over 65"

Signs of Intensifying EU-UK Vaccine Conflict

French President Emmanuel Macron [Photo by AP]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] French President Emmanuel Macron has sparked tensions between the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom over the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca.

On the 29th (local time), according to the daily newspaper The Guardian and others, President Macron told reporters that there is no clear evidence that the AstraZeneca vaccine is effective for those aged 65 and older. He said, "I consider it almost ineffective for people over 65," adding, "Our initial findings indicate that we do not recommend it for the 60 to 65 age group in relation to AstraZeneca."

President Macron also criticized the UK's vaccination policy. He stated, "AstraZeneca is not a vaccine manufacturing company," and while expressing respect for the joint efforts of many participants and the research conducted at Oxford, he pointed out, "As we have seen, there were problems in the development."

Furthermore, regarding the UK's decision to extend the interval between the first and second doses of the vaccine up to 12 weeks to accelerate vaccine rollout, he said, "Scientists explain that immunity is insufficient after a single dose, allowing the virus to adapt and leading to the spread of variant viruses." He claimed that giving only the first dose and saying 'the vaccine has been administered' is "a lie."

President Macron's remarks come amid escalating tensions between the EU and the UK following recent AstraZeneca supply shortages.

Earlier, the EU pressured AstraZeneca by threatening to block exports of vaccines produced in Europe to the UK, as vaccine shortages in member states coincided with reduced AstraZeneca supply. AstraZeneca has vaccine production facilities not only in the UK but also in Belgium and other locations, and the EU's stance was to prevent vaccines produced there from leaving the EU. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) criticized this as "vaccine nationalism," and the EU eventually withdrew this position on the same day.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.