Antonio Guterres
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has accused rich countries of “vaccine nationalism”. According to him, in the struggle for the purchase of vaccines, such states ignored the needs of less developed countries. His words, pronounced on the 75th anniversary of the first meeting of the UN General Assembly, are quoted by TASS.
He stressed that the pandemic has exposed deep problems in international cooperation. “More recently, we have seen this manifestation in vaccine nationalism, with some rich countries competing to buy vaccines for their own populations, not considering the opportunity for poor countries,” Guterres explained.
The UN Secretary General also added that the spread of the coronavirus has had a “disproportionate and dire” impact on the most vulnerable social groups: the poor, the elderly, children, people with disabilities and minorities. To address these problems, Guterres said, it is necessary to reduce inequality and strengthen ties of mutual support.
Earlier, the British Ambassador to the United States, Karen Pearce, announced Washington's reluctance to concede to Russia and China in the victory over the coronavirus. According to her, one of the main challenges was the strategic struggle with Moscow and Beijing. Pearce stressed that none of these countries should emerge victorious from the pandemic.
