EU Offers China Free Vaccines Amid Covid Surge
China has not responded to the offer yet, a spokesperson for the European Commission told journalists at a regular briefing.
The European Union has offered free COVID-19 vaccines to China, the EU executive said on Tuesday, as infections there surged following Beijing's relaxation of its "zero-COVID" policies.
China has not responded to the offer yet, a spokesperson for the European Commission told journalists at a regular briefing. He did not specify the amount of vaccines the EU was offering or their manufacturers.
"In view of the COVID situation in China, (Health) Commissioner Stella Kyriakides has reached out to her Chinese counterparts to offer EU solidarity and support," he said.
"This includes public health expertise as well as variant-adapted EU vaccine donations."
Asked whether Beijing would accept the EU offer, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning sidestepped a direct reply, telling Reuters that China's vaccination rate and treatment capacity continued to rise and its supplies were "adequate".
She said China was open to "strengthening solidarity and cooperation with the international community" to better meet its pandemic challenges, though it could "meet the demand of anyone who wants to be vaccinated".
China has so far insisted on using only Chinese-made vaccines - which are of the inactivated virus type and not based on the Western mRNA technology - for its own population.
Last month, Germany shipped 11,500 BioNTech COVID vaccines to German companies and embassy and consulate locations in China for use by German nationals there.
A source familiar with the situation said at the time that talks were underway with other European Union governments about getting them to citizens of other nationalities.
EU health experts were to meet on Tuesday to discuss the COVID situation in member states ahead of another gathering on Wednesday when EU government representatives will weigh a coordinated approach by the bloc to travellers from China.
China has not responded to the offer yet, a spokesperson for the European Commission told journalists at a regular briefing. He did not specify the amount of vaccines the EU was offering or their manufacturers.
"In view of the COVID situation in China, (Health) Commissioner Stella Kyriakides has reached out to her Chinese counterparts to offer EU solidarity and support," he said.
"This includes public health expertise as well as variant-adapted EU vaccine donations."
Asked whether Beijing would accept the EU offer, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning sidestepped a direct reply, telling Reuters that China's vaccination rate and treatment capacity continued to rise and its supplies were "adequate".
She said China was open to "strengthening solidarity and cooperation with the international community" to better meet its pandemic challenges, though it could "meet the demand of anyone who wants to be vaccinated".
China has so far insisted on using only Chinese-made vaccines - which are of the inactivated virus type and not based on the Western mRNA technology - for its own population.
Last month, Germany shipped 11,500 BioNTech COVID vaccines to German companies and embassy and consulate locations in China for use by German nationals there.
A source familiar with the situation said at the time that talks were underway with other European Union governments about getting them to citizens of other nationalities.
EU health experts were to meet on Tuesday to discuss the COVID situation in member states ahead of another gathering on Wednesday when EU government representatives will weigh a coordinated approach by the bloc to travellers from China.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.