AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca, Pfizer vaccines effective against Delta Covid-19 variants: Study
COVID-19 vaccines made by AstraZeneca NSE -0.48 % and the Pfizer-BioNTech alliance remain broadly effective against Delta and Kappa variants of the COVID-19 causing virus, which were first identified in India, according to a scientific study, underpinning a continued push to deliver the shots.
The study by Oxford University researchers, published in the journal Cell, investigated the ability of antibodies in the blood from people, who were vaccinated with the two-shot regimens, to neutralize the highly contagious Delta and Kappa variants, a statement said.
Read:Bangladesh to get $ 940 mln ADB loans for procuring Covid vaccine
"There is no evidence of widespread escape suggesting that the current generation of vaccines will provide protection against the B.1.617 lineage," the paper said, referring to the Delta and Kappa variants by a commonly used code.
However, the concentration of neutralising antibodies in the blood was somewhat reduced, which may lead to some breakthrough infections, they cautioned.
Last week, an analysis by the Public Health England (PHE) showed that vaccines made by Pfizer Inc and AstraZeneca offer high protection of more than 90% against hospitalization from the Delta variant.
"We are encouraged to see the non-clinical results published from Oxford and these data, alongside the recent early real-world analysis from Public Health England, provide us with a positive indication that our vaccine can have significant impact against the Delta variant," AstraZeneca executive Mene Pangalos said in a separate statement.
Read: Bangladesh to get fair share of vaccines: US Congresswoman
The Delta variant is becoming the globally dominant version of the disease, the World Health Organization's chief scientist said on Friday.
The Oxford researchers also analysed the likelihood of reinfection in people who had previously had COVID-19.
Looking at the ability of antibodies in their blood samples to neutralize the variants, the risk of reinfection with the Delta variant appeared particularly high in individuals previously infected by the Beta and Gamma lineages that emerged in South Africa and Brazil, respectively.
By contrast, previous infection with the Alpha, or B117, variant first detected in Britain, conferred "reasonable" cross-protection against all variants of concern, lending itself as a template that next-generation vaccines could be molded on.
Read: Countries like Bangladesh need support for vaccine production: FM
"B117 might be a candidate for new variant vaccines to provide the broadest protection," the researchers said.
This article was first published in The Economic Times
Serum may resume vaccine export in July/August
India, depending on the scale of production of vaccines within the country, is aiming at July-end or August to at least release those vaccines that have been bought by Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal and are now in pending status, reported The Print on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Vikram Kumar Doraiswami had an "informal meeting" with State Minister for Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam on Wednesday at his office at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
However, neither side revealed what they discussed.
Also read: Let's see what can be done, have patience: PM about vaccine management
Bangladesh entered into a deal with the Serum Institute of India (SII) to purchase 30 million doses of a potential vaccine being developed by AstraZeneca for Covid-19.
Bangladesh was supposed to get five million doses of vaccine per month as the SII and Bangladesh’s Beximco Pharma signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for priority delivery of the vaccine doses.
Also read: Bangladesh rolls out Pfizer vaccine at 3 Dhaka centers
Bangladesh sought at least 3 million doses of vaccine under the agreement to address the immediate demand in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh has so far received only 7 million of Oxford-AstraZeneca covid-19 vaccine doses produced by Serum Institute of India (SII) through its contract. Bangladesh also received 3.3 million doses of vaccine as a bilateral partnership gift.
AstraZeneca, EU both claim a win in vaccine delivery tussle
A Belgian court ruled Friday that coronavirus vaccine-maker AstraZeneca had committed a “serious breach” of its contract with the European Union amid a major legal battle over delivery obligations that has tarnished the company’s image.
The court ordered AstraZeneca to deliver a total of 80.2 million doses to the EU from the time the contract was agreed up until Sept. 27. The ruling said the company did not appear to have made a “best reasonable effort” to meet the delivery schedule because it had not used its U.K. production sites.
But the Anglo-Swedish company claimed victory, saying that this was far fewer than the 120 million doses that the EU’s executive branch, the European Commission, was seeking in total by the end of June. It also welcomed the court’s acknowledgement that it was under unprecedented pressure.
Also read: AstraZeneca: Govt's desperate efforts yet to yield any good news
AstraZeneca was seen as a key pillar of the EU’s vaccine rollout. Its contract with the Commission foresaw an initial 300 million doses being distributed, with an option for another 100 million, but the speed of deliveries was far slower than the company originally thought.
“We are pleased with the Court’s order,” Executive Vice-President Jeffrey Pott said in a statement. “AstraZeneca has fully complied with its agreement with the European Commission and we will continue to focus on the urgent task of supplying an effective vaccine.”
The Commission, for its part, also claimed a victory in that the judge had ordered the company to respect a delivery schedule of 15 million doses by July 26, 20 million doses by August 23 and 15 million doses by Sept. 27. It ordered a fine of 10 euros ($12) per dose not delivered.
Also read: EU takes on AstraZeneca in court over vaccine deliveries
“This decision confirms the position of the Commission: AstraZeneca did not live up to the commitments it made in the contract. It is good to see that an independent judge confirms this,” Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.
“This shows that our European vaccination campaign not only delivers for our citizens day by day. It also demonstrates that it was founded on a sound legal basis,” she said in a statement.
AstraZeneca’s image has been hurt by the slow pace of its vaccine production, but despite EU dissatisfaction with the speed of deliveries the Commission still recommends the company’s shots as effective protection against the coronavirus.
Can you mix and match Covid-19 vaccines?
Can you mix and match two-dose COVID-19 vaccines?
It’s likely safe and effective, but researchers are still gathering data to be sure.
The authorized COVID-19 shots around the world are all designed to stimulate your immune system to produce virus-fighting antibodies, though the way they do so varies, noted Dr. Kate O’Brien, director of the World Health Organization’s vaccine unit.
“Based on the basic principles of how vaccines work, we do think that the mix-and-match regimens are going to work,” she said.
Also read: Why do some people get side effects after COVID-19 vaccines?
Scientists at Oxford University in the United Kingdom are testing combinations of the two-dose COVID-19 vaccines made by AstraZeneca, Moderna, Novavax and Pfizer-BioNTech. Smaller trials are also ongoing in Spain and Germany.
“We really just need to get the evidence in each of these (vaccine) combinations,” O’Brien said.
So far, limited data suggests an AstraZeneca shot followed by the Pfizer shot is safe and effective. The combination also appears to come with a slightly higher likelihood of temporary side effects like aches and chills.
That might be because mixing and matching different types of vaccines can often produce a stronger immune response, said Lawrence Young, a virologist at the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom.
Also read: How long does protection from COVID-19 vaccines last?
In some places, health officials already suggest mixing in select circumstances.
After the AstraZeneca vaccine was linked to extremely rare blood clots, many European countries including Germany, France and Spain recommended people who got it as a first dose get a Pfizer or Moderna shot as a second dose instead.
In Britain and Canada, officials say people should aim to get the same vaccine for their second dose if possible. If they got AstraZeneca as their first shot, they’re advised to get another vaccine only if they have a history of blood clots or other conditions that might put them at higher risk of clots.
S Korea pledges $200mn to provide vaccines in lower-income countries
South Korean President Moon Jae-in has said his country will provide $200 million in aid through next year for equitable access of COVID-19 vaccines in lower-income countries.
President Moon, during a plenary session on health during a Group of Seven Summit, vowed to offer $100 million in grants this year.
Another $100 million will be given next year to the COVAX Advance Market Commitment, a financing framework made to have COVID-19 vaccines available at lower cost than usual in more than 90 developing countries with comparatively low incomes.
Read: Korea supports strengthening digital investigation capability of Bangladesh Police
Moon was invited to attend the summit as a guest alongside his counterparts from Australia, India and South Africa, according to The Korea Herald.
Moon attended the plenary session with other guests to join the leaders of G-7 members, as well as chiefs of the World Health Organization, the World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
The presidential office said the commitment will spur South Korea’s role as a global vaccine hub while it seeks partnerships with other G-7 nations.
Participants including Moon also discussed ways to cooperate on creating global public health governance and increase support for equitable medical access to nations to prepare for future public health threats, Moon’s office added.
During his visit, Moon also met with Pascal Soriot, executive director and CEO of the Britain-based AstraZeneca, to reaffirm the importance of continued cooperation in global production and supply of COVID-19 vaccines.
In the 27-minute long meeting, Moon pledged to actively cooperate with the international community to ensure enough COVID-19 vaccines are provided globally, according to the presidential office.
Read: As summit ends, G-7 urged to deliver on vaccines, climate
Cheong Wae Dae said Moon thanked Soriot for his company’s active role in the COVID-19 outbreak, saying its vaccine has been a core part of Korea’s vaccination campaign that kicked off in February. Korea aims to complete vaccination of 14 million people by the end of this month.
“AstraZeneca’s vaccine is unique for us in that it the first (COVID-19) vaccine inoculated in South Korea and is the most used vaccine,” Moon was quoted as saying.
“Koreans could receive the vaccine with relief as it was produced locally with SK’s technology transfer. This has also played an important first step for Korea to become a global vaccine production hub.”
More than 60 percent of those who have received their first jabs here were ones developed by the British pharmaceutical firm.
As of Saturday’s end, close to 8 million people in Korea have gotten their first COVID-19 shots from AstraZeneca, followed by 3.26 million from Pfizer.
Read: UK to donate 100 mn coronavirus vaccine doses
SK Group subsidiary SK Bioscience has been producing AstraZeneca’s vaccine domestically through a contract manufacturing deal.
Moon also asked Soriot to provide continued support so as to ensure a steady supply of its vaccines for the latter half of the year, Moon’s office said.
The AstraZeneca CEO also expressed appreciation for Korea’s role in the COVAX facility, as vaccines produced in the country have been provided to 75 nations within the coalition, the office added.
US to honour Bangladesh's request for AstraZeneca vaccine: FM hopes
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Tuesday hoped that the US will honor Bangladesh by providing AstraZeneca vaccine apart from other vaccines saying Bangladesh sought 20 lakh doses of the vaccine from the country.
“The US government told us that they will give us vaccines. They are yet to decide how many doses of vaccine they will be able to provide us. Naturally, there’ll be a push to that end so that we get it at the earliest,” he said.
While talking to a small group of journalists at his office, the Foreign Minister said Bangladesh needs at least 15 lakh doses of AstraZeneca immediately but sought around 20 lakh doses from the US. “I think they will honour us. Let’s see.”
The US reportedly wants to give Moderna and Pfizer vaccines for Bangladesh and Bangladesh is in discussion with China and Russia over vaccine procurement.
On June 3, the White House announced its plan to share vaccines directly with Bangladesh as part of a framework to provide 80 million U.S. vaccine doses globally by the end of the month. This includes 7 million doses destined for Asia.
Also read: Increase in Covid-19 vaccine production in India to be 'game changer' beyond borders: US
Dr Momen said he will visit New York soon to attend the General Assembly Plenary and related meetings.
A senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs tod UNB that the Foreign Minister is likely to leave here for New York on June 13.
Asked whether he will travel to Washington too, the Foreign Minister said it is not decided yet.
He welcomed the win of his counterpart of Maldives Abdulla Shahid as the President of 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). “It’s a good news for us,” he said.
Bangladesh has been elected Vice President for the upcoming 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) from the Asia Pacific Region for a one-year term beginning from September 2021.
The election was held at the United Nations General Assembly on Monday where Bangladesh was elected unanimously.
Also read: China to deliver 6 lakh doses of vaccine as gift by June 13
Along with Bangladesh, Kuwait, Lao People's Democratic Republic and the Philippines have also been elected as Vice Presidents from the Asia Pacific Region.
Bangladesh last served as Vice President during the 71st session in 2016-2017.
After the election, Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the UN Ambassador Rabab Fatima said Bangladesh is a flag bearer of multilateralism and believes in the leadership of the UN in addressing the complex challenges facing the current world.
"Bangladesh maintains principled and constructive position in various global discourses in the field of development, peace and security and human rights. Today’s election demonstrates the trust that the international community reposes on Bangladesh in the multilateral fora” she said.
The 76th session of the UN general assembly would be of particular significance as the world recovers from the COVID 19 pandemic and its multidimensional impacts, said the Bangladesh Mission in the UN on Tuesday.
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), consists of all the 193 Member States, and serves as the main deliberative, policy-making, and representative organ of the UN for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the UN Charter.
It meets under its president in annual sessions and generally starts from September, at UN headquarters in New York.
AstraZeneca: Govt's desperate efforts yet to yield any good news
Despite all-out efforts to get AstraZeneca vaccine doses to meet the immediate need of those yet to get their second dose, there is no concrete outcome yet.
Apart from India, Bangladesh reached out to the United States and United Kingdom to get the AstraZeneca vaccine doses as 1.5 million people who have received their first AstraZeneca jabs are unlikely to get their second dose if the government does not receive vaccine doses from the countries it approached including those from COVAX facility.
Asked whether Bangladesh is getting AstraZeneca vaccine doses soon from the US, a spokesperson at the US Embassy in Dhaka said the US President reaffirmed that commitment by announcing that the US will provide 80 million doses of vaccine to support global needs by the end of June.
Read: Bangladesh urgently seeks 1.6mn AstraZeneca doses from UK
But there is nothing specific yet on how many doses Bangladesh will get or when.
“We are working to provide the 80 million doses in the near future and are evaluating the supply and will then make a determination on distribution,” he told UNB.
But Bangladesh informally came to know that Bangladesh is not in the priority lists as the US does not see any crisis in Bangladesh considering the low number of deaths and cases.
The US Embassy spokesperson said the United States is committed to leading the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Our overarching aim is to end the pandemic as quickly as possible, and that requires getting as many people vaccinated as fast as possible,” he said.
Read Indonesia suspends AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine batch after death
In addition to distributing the 80 million doses of vaccine, the United States is the largest single donor to the global vaccine initiative, COVAX, with $2 billion already donated and plans to provide another $2 billion through 2022.
“We will continue to work with and coordinate closely with COVAX and partner countries around the world to support global vaccination efforts,” said the spokesperson.
Earlier, Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen wrote to US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken seeking vaccine doses from them immediately.
After its request to the United States, Bangladesh urged the United Kingdom (UK) to help by providing vaccines to meet emergency needs as the second dose vaccination is disrupted in Bangladesh.
"I’m not asking for too much, I’m only asking for 1.6m AstraZeneca doses that they have, they should immediately disperse those to Bangladesh so these people can have their second dose," said the Foreign Minister.
Read US will share AstraZeneca vaccines with world
When approached, a UK government spokesperson told UNB that the UK government does not have a role in the production or distribution of AstraZeneca‘s vaccines or their supply contracts.
The spokesperson said the UK has played a leading role in championing global access to coronavirus vaccines.
The UK is one of the largest donors to COVAX, providing £548 million to deliver more than a billion vaccines to lower-middle income countries this year.
So far, COVAX has already helped deliver vaccines to more than 120 countries and territories, over 70 of which are lower-income countries.
“Of the almost 1.5 billion vaccines which have been delivered across the world, more than 400 million doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine have been given around the world, at cost,” said the spokesperson adding that the UK Prime Minister has confirmed the UK will share the majority of any future surplus coronavirus vaccines from their supply with the COVAX pool, when these are available.
Read: Bangladesh seeks at least 2 mln doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Canada
Foreign Minister Momen said the problem that Bangladesh is facing for ensuring the second dose could have been resolved easily if vaccine doses were available from the COVAX facility timely.
He also wrote Indian External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar apart from telephone conversation between them on vaccine issues.
“I told him (Jaishankar) to send 1.5 million Oxford-AstraZeneca doses to Bangladesh as a gift if there is any export bar,” Dr Momen said.
A government source, however, said they are still hopeful of getting some vaccine doses from India in June to meet immediate needs.
Bangladesh entered into a deal with the Serum Institute of India (SII) to purchase 30 million doses of a potential vaccine being developed by AstraZeneca for Covid-19.
Read Bangladesh reaches out to int'l media as it seeks vaccines desperately
Bangladesh was supposed to get five million doses of vaccine per month as the SII and Bangladesh’s Beximco Pharma signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for priority delivery of the vaccine doses.
Bangladesh sought at least 3 million doses of vaccine under the agreement to address the immediate demand in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh has so far received only 7 million of Oxford-AstraZeneca covid-19 vaccine doses produced by Serum Institute of India (SII) through its contract. Bangladesh also received 3.3 million doses of vaccine as a bilateral partnership gift.
The British Government, Oxford University and AstraZeneca, have invested in the research and came together to develop and deliver a vaccine at cost for everyone.
Read More support easing vaccine patent rules, but hurdles remain
They expect to have surplus doses, but exactly when these will be available depends on a number of factors including the continued reliability of supply chains and whether new doses are needed to deal with variant strains or as a booster.
The government officials said both the first dose and second dose vaccination will begin simultaneously in June as procuring vaccine doses from China is at the final stage.
The Foreign Minister said Bangladesh is at the final stage to procure vaccine doses from China. “It’s at the final stage. All types of discussions are very positive.”
The government is in discussion to procure 1.5 crore doses of vaccine from China for June, July and August with an initial consignment of 50 lakh doses.
Read: Efforts intensified to get Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines from US: FM
The Cabinet Committee on Public Purchase on Thursday approved Health and Family Welfare Ministry’s proposal to procure 1.5 crore doses of Chinese Sinofarm’s Covid-19 vaccine.
Dr Momen said China assured Bangladesh of providing vaccines ensuring its steady flow of supply.
An official at the Directorate General of Health Services said the government at the highest level is trying to get vaccine doses for smooth continuation of vaccination drives across the country.
“I hope we will get the vaccines. You’ll get the second dose,” he said, requesting all to wait with patience.
The first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccination drive remains stopped due to supply shortage while the stock for the second dose to get finished within days leaving around 15 lakh people waiting for their second dose.
Read EU takes on AstraZeneca in court over vaccine deliveries
EU takes on AstraZeneca in court over vaccine deliveries
The European Union took on vaccine producer AstraZeneca in a Brussels court on Wednesday with the urgent demand that the company needs to make an immediate delivery of COVID-19 shots the bloc insists were already due.
AstraZeneca’s contract signed with the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, on behalf of member states foresaw an initial 300 million doses for distribution among all 27 countries, with an option for a further 100 million. The doses were expected to be delivered throughout 2021. But only 30 million were sent during the first quarter.
Deliveries have increased slightly since then but, according to the European Commission, the company is set to provide only 70 million doses in the second quarter. It had promised 180 million.
EU lawyer Rafael Jafferali told the court that the company now expects to deliver the total number of doses by the end of December, but he added that “with a six-month delay, it’s obviously a failure.”
Read: Malawi destroys 20,000 expired doses of AstraZeneca vaccine
His main argument is that AstraZeneca should have used production sites in the bloc and the U.K. for EU supplies as part of a “best reasonable effort” clause in the contract. He said that 50 million doses that should have been delivered to the EU went to third countries instead, “in violation” of their contract.
Jafferali has said that the company should use all four plants listed in their contract for deliveries to the EU.
He also accused the company of misleading the European Commission by providing data lacking clarity on the delivery delays.
“The information provided by AstraZeneca did not allow us to fully understand the situation before mid-March 2021,” he said.
The EU has insisted its gripes with the company are about deliveries only and has repeatedly said that it has no problems with the safety or quality of the vaccine itself. The shots have been approved by the European Medicines Agency, the EU’s drug regulator.
While the bloc insists AstraZeneca has breached its contractual obligations, the company says it has fully complied with the agreement, arguing that vaccines are difficult to manufacture and it made its best effort to deliver on time.
Lawyers for the company will address the court later Wednesday.
As part of an advanced purchase agreement with vaccine companies, the EU said it invested 2.7 billion euros ($3.8 billion), including 336 million ($408 million), to finance the production of AstraZeneca’s serum at four factories.
The long-standing dispute drew media attention for weeks earlier this year amid a deadly surge of coronavirus infections in Europe, when delays in vaccine production and deliveries hampered the EU’s vaccination campaign.
Cheaper and easier to use than rival shots from Pfizer-BioNTech, the AstraZeneca vaccine developed with Oxford University was a pillar of the EU’s vaccine rollout. But the EU’s partnership with the firm quickly deteriorated amid accusations it favored its relationship with British authorities.
While the U.K. made quick progress in its vaccination campaign thanks to the AstraZeneca shots, the EU faced embarrassing complaints and criticism for its slow start.
Concerns over the pace of the rollout across the EU grew after AstraZeneca said it couldn’t supply EU members with as many doses as originally anticipated because of production capacity limits.
Read:Indonesia suspends AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine batch after death
The health situation has dramatically improved in Europe in recent weeks, with the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths on a sharp downward trend as vaccination has picked up. About 300 million doses of vaccine have been delivered in Europe — a region with around 450 million inhabitants, with about 245 million already administered.
About 46% of the EU population have had at least one dose.
In total, the European Commission has secured more than 2.5 billion of vaccine doses with various manufacturers. It recently sealed another major order with Pfizer and BioNTech through 2023 for an additional 1.8 billion doses of their COVID-19 shot to share between the bloc’s countries.
Following Wednesday’s hearing, a second one is slated for Friday, with a judgment to be delivered at a date to be announced. In addition to the emergency action, the European Commission has launched a claim on the merits of the case for damages for which a hearing hasn’t yet been set by the court.
Bangladesh urgently seeks 1.6mn AstraZeneca doses from UK
After its request to the United States, Bangladesh has urged the United Kingdom (UK) to help it by providing vaccine doses to meet its emergency needs as the second dose vaccination is disrupted in Bangladesh.
"I’m not asking for too much, I’m only asking for 1.6m AstraZeneca doses that they have, they should immediately disburse those to Bangladesh so that people can have their second dose," Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said in an interview with ITV News.
Dr Momen said his message to the UK government is that they should be more sincere. "They should help their Commonwealth member states."
He said Bangladesh is a good friend of the UK and so many Bangladeshis contribute to the UK economy. "… so the UK should come forward."
Speaking to ITV News, Dr Momen described the vaccine situation in Bangladesh as a "crisis", adding: "We’re desperate."Bangladesh entered into a deal with the Serum Institute of India (SII) to purchase 30 million doses of a potential vaccine being developed by AstraZeneca for Covid-19.
Read: Rozina to get fair judgement: FM tells CNN
Bangladesh was supposed to get five million doses of the vaccine per month as the SII and Bangladesh’s Beximco Pharma signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for priority delivery of the vaccine doses.
Bangladesh sought at least 3 million doses of the vaccine under the agreement to address the immediate demand in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh has so far received only 7 million of Oxford-AstraZeneca covid-19 vaccine doses produced by Serum Institute of India (SII) through its contract. Bangladesh also received 3.3 million doses of the vaccine as a bilateral partnership gift.
"India is facing a very critical situation, very alarming… They’re finding it difficult, we can understand it,” Dr Momen said. "So, they’re failing to distribute the vaccine they promised to send us."
He told ITV News that the Bangladeshi government has appealed directly to the UK government for these required doses, but the request was ultimately rejected on the grounds that the UK government did not have the capacity.
"We’ve a belief that if the [UK] government tries, it can do it because they’ve the capacity," the Bangladesh Foreign Minister said.
Although Covid-19 daily cases in Bangladesh are relatively low and, according to the Foreign Minister, measures were in place to prevent the spread of the Indian variant into Bangladesh, the identification of six cases in Bangladesh earlier this month has concerned some experts.
On Friday, the Foreign Minister reached out to global media to let the world know that Bangladesh desperately looks for vaccines desperately and is ready to accept any shipment desperately from any country, including the United States.
"We need it desperately. If any shipment comes, we’ll take it right away," he told CNN in a live interview.
Dr Momen said the big problem is that a large number of people in Bangladesh who took the first dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca could not get the second dose. "Because we don't have any more. We can't give them the second dose. That’s creating a lot of problems for us," said the Foreign Minister.
He said the government of Bangladesh is trying to get vaccines from other places and they were delighted when Bangladesh heard that the US will be distributing some of the AstraZeneca vaccines that they have.
Dr Momen said he had requested the US government and sent a letter to his counterpart US Secretary of State. "They agreed to give us by and large. "
Read: S Korean envoy shares historical documents with FM Momen
Now the problem is, he said, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is taking a long time to approve the export of AstraZeneca.
Dr Momen said they are thankful to US President Joe Biden for announcing that the USA will be distributing some of the AstraZeneca vaccine to developing countries, pretty large numbers - 60 million plus 20 around - 80 million vaccines. "This is good news for us."
Exploring Multiple Options On Thursday, Dr Momen said the government is making its best efforts to get vaccines connecting multiple countries - the United States, China, Canada and Russia the UK - apart from its continuous request to India to meet Bangladesh's urgent needs.
He said the discussion with China is almost at the final stage while they are expecting a positive reply from the US on the vaccine front.
While talking to reporters at State guesthouse Padma, Dr Momen said there are people who could not take the second dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine due to its short supply from India.
He also highlighted the ongoing discussion with Russia. "Hope, everything will be settled within a week."
Responding to a question, the Foreign Minister said they came to know unofficially that Bangladesh is not there on the priority list of the USA as there is a lesser number of deaths in Bangladesh.
"I didn't like the idea. They (US) don't think it's a crisis in Bangladesh," he said, adding that it is an emergency issue for Bangladesh.
US State Department Coordinator for Global COVID Response and Health Security Gayle E Smith has said the United States is going to be the largest sharer of vaccines putting 80 million additional doses into the mix.
"I can’t tell you at this point what the allocation is going to be per country. We’ll have information for you later on. And as I think I mentioned, we are also, with respect to India and also India’s neighbours, mounting an emergency humanitarian response given the surges that are ongoing there," she said.
In a telephonic media briefing on Wednesday, Smith referred to an announcement by US President Joe Biden earlier this week that they will be sharing 20 million vaccine doses from their own stocks in addition to the 60 million AstraZeneca doses that were announced previously by the President.
"So that means we’re going to be putting 80 million additional vaccine doses into the mix, making us the largest sharer of vaccines thus far," she said.
The US official said given the surge there, India has been a major priority for the US. "We’ve delivered $100 million in emergency assistance; mobilised with the American private sector a pretty amazing response, again, from the American private sector and public, and we’ll continue to do so."
Read: More countries approached for vaccines; talks with China at final stage: FM
Smith said she does not have anything to say yet on the ultimate allocations, but they will reach out and make sure that all are informed when those decisions are made.
Responding to a question on India, Dr Momen said India did never say that they will not give vaccines to Bangladesh but failed to deliver.
He said India was requested to provide vaccine doses to Bangladesh as a gift to meet its emergency need if India has an embargo on export.
"I should say we had a very positive discussion (with my Indian counterpart," Dr Momen said.
Bangladesh reaches out to int'l media as it seeks vaccines desperately
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Friday reached out to the global media to let the world know that Bangladesh looks for vaccines desperately and is ready to accept any shipment desperately from any country, including the United States.
"We need it desperately. If any shipment comes, we’ll take it right away," he told CNN in a live interview.
Dr Momen said the big problem is that a large number of people in Bangladesh who took the first dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca could not take the second dose.
"Because we don't have any more. We can't give them the second dose. That’s creating a lot of problems for us," said the Foreign Minister.
Read: More countries approached for vaccines; talks with China at final stage: FM
He said the government of Bangladesh is trying to get vaccines from other places and they were delighted when Bangladesh heard that the US will be distributing some of the AstraZeneca vaccines that they have.
Dr Momen said he had requested the US government and sent a letter to his counterpart US Secretary of State. "They agreed to give us by and large."
Now the problem is, he said, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is taking a long time to approve the export of AstraZeneca.
Dr Momen said they are thankful to US President Joe Biden for announcing that the USA will be distributing some of the Astrazeneca vaccine doses to developing countries, pretty large numbers - 60 million plus 20 around - 80 million doses. "This is good news for us."
Exploring Multiple Options
On Thursday, Dr Momen said the government is giving its best efforts to get vaccines connecting multiple countries - the United States, China, Canada, Russia and the UK apart from its continuous request to India to meet Bangladesh's urgent needs.
He said the discussion with China is almost at the final stage while they are expecting a positive reply from the US on the vaccine front.
While talking to reporters at State guesthouse Padma, Dr Momen said there are people who could not take the second dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine due to short supply from India.
He also highlighted the ongoing discussion with Russia. "Hope, everything will be settled within a week."
Responding to a question, the Foreign Minister said they came to know unofficially that Bangladesh is not in the priority list of the USA as there is a lesser number of deaths in Bangladesh.
"I didn't like the idea. They (US) don't think it's a crisis in Bangladesh," he said, adding that it is an emergency issue for Bangladesh.
US State Department Coordinator for Global COVID Response and Health Security Gayle E. Smith has said the United States is going to be the largest sharer of vaccine jabs putting 80 million additional vaccine doses into the mix.
"I can’t tell you at this point what the allocation is going to be per country. We’ll have information for you later on. And as I think I mentioned, we are also, with respect to India and also India’s neighbors, mounting an emergency humanitarian response given the surges that are ongoing there," she said.
In a telephonic media briefing on Wednesday, Smith referred to an announcement by US President Joe Biden earlier this week that they will be sharing 20 million vaccine doses from their own stocks in addition to the 60 million AstraZeneca doses that were announced previously by the President.
"So that means we’re going to be putting 80 million additional vaccines into the mix, making us the largest sharer of vaccine doses thus far," she said.
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The US official said given the surge there, India has been a major priority for the US. "We’ve delivered $100 million in emergency assistance; mobilised with the American private sector a pretty amazing response, again, from the American private sector and public, and we’ll continue to do so."
Smith said she does not have anything to say yet on the ultimate allocations, but they will reach out and make sure that all are informed when those decisions are made.
Responding to a question on India, Dr Momen said India did never say that they will not give vaccine doses to Bangladesh but failed to deliver.
He said India was requested to provide vaccine doses to Bangladesh as a gift to meet its emergency need if India has an embargo on export.
"I should say we had a very positive discussion (with my Indian counterpart," Dr Momen said.