US Makes First Decision to Supply Pfizer, Moderna, and J&J Vaccines Overseas

Provision of 20 Million Vaccine Doses by End of June
First Supply Decision for Domestically Produced Approved Vaccine
Biden: "Will Become a Vaccine Arsenal but Not to Gain Favor from Other Countries"
Criticism of Russia and China's Vaccine Diplomacy

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] President Joe Biden announced that he will provide 20 million doses of Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines overseas by the end of June. This is the first time the United States has announced the overseas supply of vaccines produced domestically. With the Korea-US summit with President Moon Jae-in approaching and vaccine swaps being promoted, attention is focused on whether these vaccines will be allocated to Korea as well.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

On the 17th (local time), President Biden said in a speech at the White House, "We will share 20 million doses of vaccines authorized for use in the United States overseas within the next six weeks."

President Biden emphasized the significance of this decision by stating, "We know that the United States will never be completely safe until the pandemic raging worldwide is controlled."

The vaccines the U.S. plans to support are those from Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson. Including the previously announced 60 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccines, a total of 80 million doses will be sent overseas. President Biden explained that the vaccines provided overseas by the end of June amount to 13% of the vaccines produced domestically during the same period.

President Biden said, "We will send all AstraZeneca vaccines held by the United States overseas," adding, "We will continue to provide surplus vaccines in the future, but the quantity will not be sufficient."

This is the first time the U.S. has shared COVID-19 vaccines it has authorized with other countries. The AstraZeneca vaccine has not received emergency use authorization in the United States.

A senior White House official told Bloomberg News that this is just the first step taken while the U.S. focuses on mitigating the global pandemic, suggesting that follow-up measures may continue.

While engaging in vaccine diplomacy, President Biden emphasized that this is not to protect American interests.

He stated, "Our country will be the arsenal of vaccines for the world," and criticized China and Russia for using their domestically produced vaccines as leverage to expand influence, saying, "We will not use our vaccines to gain benefits from other countries."

President Biden stressed that the scale of vaccines supplied by the U.S. is greater than any other country. He explained, "It will be more than Russia and China, which have provided 15 million doses."

He added, "We want to lead the world with our values. Challenging democracies leading the way out of the COVID-19 crisis is a mistake."

However, President Biden did not mention the temporary waiver of COVID-19 vaccine patents on this day. He emphasized that by providing vaccines produced in the U.S. overseas, jobs will be created domestically and lives saved abroad.

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