Politics

China urges G20 not to ‘hoard’ Covid vaccines

Beijing, Jun 29 (EFE).- China’s foreign minister Wang Yi on Tuesday called on coronavirus-vaccine-producing countries to share doses of the inoculations with the rest of the world without limits to avoid “immunization gaps” between rich and poor nations.

“G20 members must persevere with cooperation and lead the global fight against the pandemic,” Wang said during a speech he delivered virtually during the face-to-face meeting of the G20 foreign and development ministers held in Italy.

“China calls on countries that are capable of providing vaccines to avoid vaccine export restrictions or excessive hoarding,” he added.

“So far, China has provided more than 450 million doses of vaccines to nearly 100 countries,” he said. “All parties must respond to the pandemic scientifically and provide more support to developing countries”.

He called for multilateralism to be “the establishing element” of the international system, and for the G20 “to lead by example”.

“Multilateralism is not a bombastic slogan or a packaging for unilateralism. It consists of protecting the international system with the United Nations at the center or adhering to openness and tolerance in the face of exclusive policies,” he added.

Italian foreign minister Luigi Di Maio, whose country holds the rotating G20 presidency, on Tuesday inaugurated the session by affirming that his country supports “effective multilateralism”. EFE

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