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Covid-19 in India - Second Wave - World Extends Help and Support - Updates and Discussion

China and India are enemies ? Why would they take their enemies vaccine...

I thought US and India were in a love affair or was unrequited love

..can't you read Pakistan is one of the 58 countries to petition WTO - it's isn't just India.
besides the IP for mRNA doesn't even belong to the US government it belongs to Moderna, Pfizer and BioNTech. India , Russia and China have their own vaccines so why the interest in Western IP?

China, Russia and India brag about high effectiveness of their own home grown vaccines but people want western firms to open their kimono and give up their secrets.
 
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..can't you read Pakistan is one of the 58 countries to petition WTO - it's isn't just India.
besides the IP for mRNA doesn't even belong to the US government it belongs to Moderna, Pfizer and BioNTech. India , Russia and China have their own vaccines so why the interest in Western IP?

China, Russia and India brag about high effectiveness of their own home grown vaccines but people want western firms to open their kimono and give up their secrets.
Because intellectual property protection is a rule of the United Nations. China's sharing of vaccine IP cannot change this rule. In fact, China has already shared vaccine IP, and many countries are establishing Chinese vaccine factories.
 
Of course nations are interested in Chinese vaccines. Otherwise no one would be using them. China along with Russia are stepping in to fill the void. Doesn't take away the fact that Western nations are displaying greed and nationalism.

You have some answering to do here. Why are you not helping Hindustan which is supposed to be your main ally.

Western nations have given billions to COVAX. The US has given 4 billion USD in funds to WHO to procure vaccines. Of course we are going to prioritise our own citizens over other nations.
WHO is free to use COVAX funds to buy any approved vaccine. Problem is none of the Chinese vaccines are yet approved by the WHO. So far, it's Pfizer, Astrazeneca, Moderna, Jansen and Sputnik.
Whose fault is that? Why did China delay sending phase 2 and 3 data to the WHO? Phase 3 trails for SinoVac was finished late last year. Probably because China was afraid to lose face for the low efficacy of its vaccine OR China wanted global accolades, gratitude and the limelight and chose to ignore WHO COVAX and distribute the vaccine on its own. It's one or the other in either case why isn't anyone hassling China for the intellectual property of its vaccines? China has all three type, mRNA, viral vector and inactivated.
Because intellectual property protection is a rule of the United Nations. China's sharing of vaccine IP cannot change this rule. In fact, China has already shared vaccine IP, and many countries are establishing Chinese vaccine factories.

China hasn't shared IP with anyone, China has bottling and redistribution plants in Pakistan, UAE and Egypt.
 
There is serios money to be made in Vaccines for Covid - EU are about to sign a contract for 1.8 billion doses at $23 per dose. That is $41billion dollars worth for the EU alone..

I am sure the Americans will love to sell those doses to the Indian's once they have finished at home.

( PS - the EU order for PFizer is mostly likely a bung to BionTech and PFizer to increase their production capacities in Germany - lets see - I am certain of it, seeing Angela Merkels recent intervention .. this is an indirect state subsidy for sure as the Pfizer price has been inflated from $17 to #23.. to build those facilities as a backdoor payment )..

(PPS - The irony of the EU stealinng vaccines destined to be use in Canada, Australia, and the UK for their own use is not lost on me...

The Irony of the EU to recongise contract law and the UK's contract with AstraZeneca is also not lost on me...).
 
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No QAUD SHWAD matters at crunch times. The US will look after itself. They may relent with some supplies.
 
China 'Ready' to Help India Fight COVID-19 Crisis Amid U.S. Vaccine Materials Ban
BY TOM O'CONNOR
ON 4/22/21 AT 6:50 PM EDT

China has offered to help India fight its worsening COVID-19 crisis as the United States continues to ban exports of vaccines for the coronavirus disease.

India marked a world record surge Thursday of more than 300,000 new COVID-19 cases in a single day as the nation of some 1.3 billion people scrambled to curb the spread of the illness and treat those already infected despite dwindling resources. The situation has prompted international concern, including from neighboring China.

"The COVID-19 pandemic is a common enemy of all mankind that necessitates international solidarity and mutual assistance," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told reporters on Thursday. "China takes note of the recent grave situation in India with a temporary shortage of anti-epidemic medical supplies."

With Beijing having largely reined in the disease, one first detected in the Chinese province of Hubei in late 2019, he said his country was prepared to offer its support

"We stand ready to provide India with necessary support and assistance to get the epidemic under control," Wang said.

The offer comes despite lingering frictions between the world's two largest populations, whose long-running border dispute turned deadly last year when skirmishes saw the deaths of at least 20 Indian troops and four Chinese soldiers. Successive rounds of military and political talks led to disengagement, but tensions remain.

Having long remained non-aligned throughout the Cold War, though close with the former Soviet Union, India has begun to foster warmer ties with the West, and especially the United States. The trend comes at a time when Washington sought to shore up its ties in Asia to counter Beijing's rise.


Growing U.S.-India relations have been reinforced by a number of joint agreements in recent years, as well as their shared commitment to the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, which also includes Australia and Japan. The foursome seeks to ensure a "free and open Indo-Pacific" and each member has often criticized China's behavior in the region.

And while Washington and New Delhi's ties have been on an upswing, some hiccups have emerged, such as a recent U.S. Navy "freedom of navigation" operation that challenged India's requirement for countries to seek prior permission to conduct military activities off the coast of the Lakshadweep Islands in the Indian Ocean. The Indian External Ministry expressed "concerns" over the incident.

As the rapid COVID-19 spike tops national priorities, however, a potential new hurdle has emerged for the two partners as the U.S. maintains a ban on exporting key materials used to manufacture vaccines for the disease. The restrictions come in line with the Korean War-era Defense Production Act, invoked by the U.S. in a bid to prioritize domestic vaccine manufacturing.

Adar Poonawalla, CEO and owner of vaccine maker Serum Institute of India, recently issued a personal appeal to Biden on social media.

"Respected @POTUS, if we are to truly unite in beating this virus, on behalf of the vaccine industry outside the U.S., I humbly request you to lift the embargo of raw material exports out of the U.S. so that vaccine production can ramp up," Poonawalla tweeted last Friday. "Your administration has the details."

Asked Tuesday about these details, State Department spokesperson Ned Price declined to discuss the specifics of the matter but spoke broadly as to the U.S. point of view, which has been expressed by President Joe Biden and Secretary Antony Blinken.

"President Biden, Secretary Blinken, they're deeply focused on the issue of expanding global vaccination, manufacturing, and delivery – all of which will be critical to ending the pandemic," Price said. "Secretary Blinken consistently makes the point that as long as the virus is out of control, is uncontained anywhere around the world, whether that is here in the United States, whether that is elsewhere, it continues to present a risk to the American people."

This meant putting the homeland first.

"Of course, first and foremost, our priority is ensuring the distribution of a safe and effective vaccine to millions of Americans, to all Americans who are able to take advantage of it," Price said.

He said the administration recognized, however, the "need to continue to demonstrate that leadership when it comes to countries beyond our borders," and highlighted U.S. reengagement with the World Health Organization, multibillion-dollar contributions to the United Nations COVAX global vaccination program and discussions regarding vaccines with neighboring allies Canada and Mexico as well as the Quad.

Price echoed these remarks during Thursday's daily press conference when the issue of India's soaring COVID-19 rates again came up.

"As we are more comfortable in our position here at home, as we are confident that we are able to address any contingencies as they may arise, I expect we'll be able to do more," Price said. "And we will, of course, always do as much as we can, consistent with our first obligation."

Health cooperation between the two countries was also discussed earlier this week in a phone call between Blinken and Indian External Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.

The U.S. remains by far the worst hit by the pandemic, with nearly 32 million cases—roughly one in 10 among the population—and 570,000 deaths. India comes in second with 16 million cases and roughly 184,000 fatalities.

India was also the world's second-largest exporter of COVID-19 vaccines before halting such measures last month in order to address increasingly pressing needs at home. China, on the other hand, has expanded its vaccine exports across the globe and has called for the vaccine to become a "public good."

In their most recent estimate, Chinese officials have said their country was providing vaccine assistance to 80 countries and three international organizations, exporting to 40-plus countries and has entered into vaccine research, development and production cooperation with more than 10 countries.

Both Beijing and New Delhi believe drug makers should not be permitted to patent vaccines. A bid by India and fellow BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) group member South Africa to introduce a ban on such restrictions at the World Trade Organization was rejected by wealthy Western countries such as the U.S. and the United Kingdom, as well as the European Union, which have argued the move might disrupt production at home.

 
US faces increased calls to share abundant COVID-19 vaccine doses with poorer countries
April 24, 2021
Associated Press

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras —
Victor Guevara knows people his age have been vaccinated against COVID-19 in many countries. His own relatives in Houston have been inoculated.

But the 72-year-old Honduran lawyer, like so many others in his country, is still waiting. And increasingly, he is wondering why the United States is not doing more to help, particularly as the American vaccine supply begins to outpace demand and doses that have been approved for use elsewhere in the world, but not in the U.S., sit idle.

"We live in a state of defenselessness on every level," Guevara said of the situation in his Central American homeland.

Honduras has obtained a paltry 59,000 vaccine doses for its 10 million people. Similar gaps in vaccine access are found across Africa, where just 36 million doses have been acquired for the continent's 1.3 billion people, as well as in parts of Asia.

In the United States, more than one-fourth of the population — nearly 90 million people — has been fully vaccinated and supplies are so robust that some states are turning down planned shipments from the federal government.

This stark access gap is prompting increased calls across the world for the U.S. to start shipping vaccine supplies to poorer countries. That's creating an early test for President Joe Biden, who has pledged to restore American leadership on the world stage and prove to wary nations that the U.S. is a reliable partner after years of retrenchment during the Trump administration.

J. Stephen Morrison, senior vice president and director of the Global Health Policy Center at the Center for Strategic & International Studies in Washington, said that as the U.S. moves from vaccine scarcity to abundance, it has an opportunity to "shape the outcomes dramatically in this next phase because of the assets we have."

Biden, who took office in January as the virus was raging in the U.S., has responded cautiously to calls for help from abroad.

He has focused the bulk of his administration's vaccinations efforts at home. He kept in place an agreement struck by the Trump administration requiring drugmakers that got U.S. aid in developing or expanding vaccine manufacturing to sell their first doses produced in the country to the U.S. government. The U.S. has also used the Defense Production Act to secure vital supplies for the production of vaccine, a move that has blocked the export of some supplies outside the country.


White House aides have argued that Biden's cautious approach to promises around vaccine supply and delivery was validated in the wake of manufacturing issues with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and the subsequent safety "pause" to investigate a handful of reported blood clots. In addition, officials say they need to maintain reserves in the U.S. to vaccinate teenagers and younger children once safety studies for those age groups are completed and if booster shots should be required later.

The White House is aware that the rest of the world is watching. Last month, the U.S. shared 4 million vaccine doses with neighboring Canada and Mexico, and this past week, Biden said those countries would be targets for additional supplies. He also said countries in Central America could receive U.S. vaccination help, though officials have not detailed any specific plans.

The lack of U.S. vaccine assistance around the world has created an opportunity for China and Russia, which have promised millions of doses of domestically produced shots to other countries, though there have been production delays that have hampered the delivery of some supplies. China's foreign minister Wang Yi said this month that China opposes "vaccine nationalism" and that vaccines should become a global public good.

Professor Willem Hanekom, director of the Africa Health Research Institute and a vaccinologist, said wealthy countries have a stake in the success of vaccination efforts in other corners of the world.

"Beyond the moral obligation, the problem is that if there is not going to be control of the epidemic globally, this may ultimately backfire for these rich countries, if in areas where vaccines are not available variants emerge against which the vaccines might not work," Hanekom said.

The U.S. has also faced criticism that it is not only hoarding its own stockpiles, but also blocking other countries from accessing vaccines, including through its use of the law that gives Washington broad authority to direct private companies to meet the needs of the national defense.

Adar Poonawalla, chief executive of the Serum Institute of India, the world's largest maker of vaccines and a critical supplier of the U.N.-backed COVAX facility, asked Biden on Twitter on April 16 to lift the U.S. embargo on exporting raw materials needed to make the jabs.

India is battling the world's fastest pace of spreading infections. Its government has blocked vaccine exports for several months to better meet needs at home, exacerbating the difficulty of poor countries to access vaccine.


The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' 2020 annual report also raised eyebrows for a section titled "Combatting malign influences in the Americas," which said the U.S. had convinced Brazil to not buy the Russian shot.

The U.S. Embassy denied exerting any pressure regarding vaccines approved by Brazil's health regulator, which has not yet signed off on Sputnik V. Since March 13, Brazil has been trying to negotiate supply of U.S. surplus vaccines for itself, according to the foreign ministry.

There are also concerns that the U.S. might link vaccine sharing to other diplomatic efforts. Washington's loan of 2.7 million doses of AstraZeneca's shots to Mexico last month came on the same day Mexico announced it was restricting crossings at its southern border, an effort that could help decrease the number of migrants seeking entry into the United States.

Those sort of parallel tracks of diplomacy will be closely watched as the Biden administration decides with whom to share its surplus vaccine, particularly in Central America, home to many countries where migrant families and unaccompanied children are trying to make their way to the U.S.

"What we would hope to avoid is any perception that increased access to lifesaving vaccines in Central America is in exchange for increased tightening of border security," said Maureen Meyer, vice president for programs at the Washington Office on Latin America.

As the wait for vaccines continues in Honduras, desperation is growing.

Last week, a private business group announced it would try to buy 1.5 million vaccine doses to help government efforts, though it was unclear how it might obtain them. In March, authorities in Mexico seized 5,700 doses of purported Russian vaccines found in false bottoms of ice chests aboard a private plane bound for Honduras. The company owner who chartered the plane said he was trying to obtain vaccines for his employees and their families. The vaccine's Russian distributor said the vaccines were fake.

Lilian Tilbeth Hernández Banegas, 46, was infected with COVID-19 in late November and spent 13 days in a Tegucigalpa hospital. The first days she struggled to breathe and thought she would die.

The experience has made the mother of three more anxious about the virus and more diligent about avoiding it. The pandemic rocked her family's finances. Her husband sells used cars, but hasn't made a sale in more than four months.

"I want to vaccinate myself, my family to be vaccinated, because my husband and my children go out to work, but it's frustrating that the vaccines don't arrive," Hernández said.

There's plenty of blame to go around, said Marco Tulio Medina, coordinator of the COVID-19 committee at the National Autonomous University of Honduras, noting his own government's lackadaisical approach and the ferocity of the vaccine marketplace. But the wealthy can do more.

"There's a lack of humanism on the part of the rich countries," he said. "They're acting in an egotistical way, thinking of themselves and not of the world."


https://www.mynbc5.com/article/us-faces-calls-to-share-covid-19-vaccines/36217149
 
:rolleyes1: He never gives up
Wrong forum...move to dedicated Coronavirus thread please....

As for the article...there's 7.6 Billion people in the world...and they all want a vaccine tomorrow.
 
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ISLAMABAD: As a gesture of solidarity with the people of India in the wake of the current Covid-19 wave, Pakistan on Saturday offered to provide relief support to New Delhi to deal with the sharp increase in the COVID-19 cases.

According to Foreign Office spokesperson, Pakistan has offered to provide relief support to India including ventilators, Bi-PAP, digital X-ray machines, PPEs and related items.

“The concerned authorities of Pakistan and #India can work out modalities for quick delivery of the relief items,” reads the statement from the Foreign Office.

“They can also explore possible ways of further cooperation to mitigate the challenges posed by the pandemic,” the statement concluded.



Prime Minister Imran Khan today expressed solidarity with the people of India as they battle a dangerous COVID-19 wave witnessing record worldwide virus cases in a day and acute shortage of oxygen at health facilities.

Taking to Twitter, Imran Khan said that he wanted to express their solidarity with the people of India as they battle a dangerous wave of COVID-19.


https://arynews.tv/en/pakistan-relief-support-india-covid-19-crisis
 
Why would piss on them if they are on fire?

Leave them to burn
 
I do not think that India is short on ventilators and the other items mentioned but it looks like they have run out of oxygen and that is why so many patients cannot get the help they need.

If Pakistan can airlift some oxygen then that would be the most helpful
 
ISLAMABAD: As a gesture of solidarity with the people of India in the wake of the current Covid-19 wave, Pakistan on Saturday offered to provide relief support to New Delhi to deal with the sharp increase in the COVID-19 cases.

According to Foreign Office spokesperson, Pakistan has offered to provide relief support to India including ventilators, Bi-PAP, digital X-ray machines, PPEs and related items.

“The concerned authorities of Pakistan and #India can work out modalities for quick delivery of the relief items,” reads the statement from the Foreign Office.

“They can also explore possible ways of further cooperation to mitigate the challenges posed by the pandemic,” the statement concluded.



Prime Minister Imran Khan today expressed solidarity with the people of India as they battle a dangerous COVID-19 wave witnessing record worldwide virus cases in a day and acute shortage of oxygen at health facilities.

Taking to Twitter, Imran Khan said that he wanted to express their solidarity with the people of India as they battle a dangerous wave of COVID-19.


https://arynews.tv/en/pakistan-relief-support-india-covid-19-crisis
Going to comment section.
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