British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace responded to threats from the European Commission (EC) to block the export of coronavirus vaccines to other countries due to the disruption of supplies to Europe, writes Evening Standard.
Any attempt by Brussels to obstruct the supply of drugs from COVID-19 to Britain, he said, would be “counterproductive.” “It would be like an adult if the EC and some European leaders did not engage in rhetoric, but recognized the obligations that we all have,” Wallace said.
He added that if such a decision is made, the European Union will face destructive reputational costs for trade and diplomacy. “It will be very difficult for them to change the situation in the short term,” the minister warned.
Earlier, the head of the European Commission (EC) Ursula von der Leyen threatened AstraZeneca with a ban on exporting its coronavirus vaccine from the European Union to other countries in connection with a sharp reduction in supplies. According to her, by the end of the first quarter, the manufacturer delivered only 30 percent of the volume of vaccines prescribed in the contract.
At the end of February, it was reported that Europe would miss tens of millions of doses of AstraZeneca vaccine in the second quarter of this year. One of the reasons is a fire at a plant under construction for the production of the drug in the Indian city of Pune.
