U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said on Wednesday she is pushing for a waiver of COVID-19 vaccine intellectual property rights because the United States and drug makers have "an obligation to help save the world right now."
ChinaVaccine IP waiver could take months for WTO to negotiate-experts
David Lawder
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Nursing student Erika Lohr vaccinates a patient as California opens up vaccine eligibility to any residents 16 years and older during the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Chula Vista, California, U.S., April 15, 2021. REUTERS/Mike Blake
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Now that the U.S. President Joe Biden has backed a proposed waiver for COVID-19 vaccine intellectual property rights, the next stop is for the World Trade Organization to hammer out a deal - a process that could take months.
Not only are the negotiations expected to be lengthy, they are also likely to result in a waiver that is significantly narrower in scope and shorter in duration than the one initially proposed by India and South Africa, trade experts said.
President Joe Biden on Wednesday threw his support behind waiving intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines, bowing to mounting pressure from Democratic lawmakers and more than 100 other countries, but angering pharmaceutical companies.
May 5, 20211:29 PM UTC
Healthcare & PharmaceuticalsU.S. trade chief Tai says time is of the essence in addressing vaccine waiver at WTO
Reuters
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U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai testifies before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee during a hearing on Capitol Hill, in Washington, U.S., April 28, 2021. Sarah Silbiger/Pool via REUTERS
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai on Wednesday underscored the urgency of increasing COVID-19 vaccine supplies worldwide and addressing a proposal to waive some intellectual property rights under global trade rules given the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tai told a Financial Times event that all of her actions with regard to the vaccine issue are being made through a lens of increasing access and saving lives - including how the United States approaches demands from India, South Africa and other developing countries to waive intellectual property rights associated with vaccines.
ChinaBlinken says China acting more aggressively abroad - 60 Minutes interview
David Shepardson
4 minute read
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken participates in a virtual bilateral meeting with Kenya s President Uhuru Kenyatta during a videoconference at the State Department in Washington, U.S., April 27, 2021. REUTERS/Leah Millis/Pool
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in an interview that aired on Sunday that China had recently acted more aggressively abroad and was behaving increasingly in adversarial ways.
Asked by CBS News 60 Minutes if Washington was heading toward a military confrontation with Beijing, Blinken said: It s profoundly against the interests of both China and the United States to, to get to that point, or even to head in that direction.