Promote the fair distribution of global vaccines, China does what it says

Promote the fair distribution of global vaccines, China does what it says 

In the past few days, the issue of China's participation in the "New Coronary Pneumonia Vaccine Implementation Plan" has attracted great attention from the global media and has been widely praised by the international community. As a country with the highest level of vaccine research and development in the world, China has 4 new coronavirus vaccines in phase III clinical trials and has sufficient production and self-sufficiency capabilities. Why did you decide to join this co-sponsored by WHO and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization "Implementation Plan"? As Chinese officials have repeatedly emphasized in recent days, the purpose of this move is to promote the fair distribution of global vaccines, to ensure that developing countries can obtain vaccines, and to encourage more capable countries to join and support the "implementation plan." At the critical moment of the global response to the epidemic, China has used actions to show that China has done what it says to promote vaccines to become a global public product and to improve vaccine accessibility and affordability.

The objectives of the "New Coronary Pneumonia Vaccine Implementation Plan" cover multiple aspects such as the overall planning of global resources, acceleration of vaccine development and production, and fair distribution. It is understood that the "Implementation Plan" is expected to provide at least 2 billion doses of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine to the world by the end of 2021 to protect high-risk and susceptible populations and front-line medical staff in all countries, and to ensure that all participating countries will, regardless of their income level, Equal access to these vaccines.

This shows that the continuous and stable supply of safe vaccines is a prerequisite for the advancement of the "implementation plan." However, the new crown vaccines developed by companies such as AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson have experienced serious adverse reactions, and even caused the suspension of trials, casting a shadow over the smooth implementation of the plan. Against this background, China's entry has undoubtedly boosted global confidence in the smooth progress of the "implementation plan".

This confidence firstly stems from China's actions that have greatly enriched the global "anti-epidemic technology toolbox." According to Chinese officials, currently 13 new crown vaccines in China have entered clinical trials, of which 4 vaccines that have entered phase III clinical trials are generally progressing well. Up to now, China has vaccinated a total of about 60,000 subjects. There have been no reports of serious adverse reactions, and some people who go to work in high-risk areas have not reported infections.

The international community has affirmed the leading level and safety of China's vaccine research and development. "Washington Post" wrote an article that China currently enters Phase III clinical trials of vaccines, accounting for almost half of the world's 9 vaccines. The internationally renowned medical journal "The Lancet" recently published a randomized clinical trial research report on China's new coronavirus inactivated vaccine, pointing out that this candidate vaccine is safe and can trigger an antibody response in the experimenter. Joao Doria, the governor of the State of Sao Paulo in Brazil, recently made it clear that a new crown vaccine developed by a Chinese company is "the safest and most promising vaccine among all vaccines tested in Brazil."

At the same time, China's participation in the "implementation plan" will provide support for the fair distribution of vaccines worldwide. In the past, vaccines have always been used by Western pharmaceutical companies to make high profits, and the vast majority of developing countries and poor people cannot afford the high prices. This objectively increases the difficulty of global epidemic prevention and control. For this reason, in the face of this unprecedented global public health crisis in a century, the international community has a stronger demand for the fair distribution of vaccines.

But what is infuriating is that after the outbreak, the world's only superpower not only withdrew from the WHO, but also refused to join the "implementation plan" on the grounds of not participating in related activities of the organization. What's more, earlier this year the US government was accused of trying to buy out a German company's vaccine research and development technology in an attempt to "eat alone." A series of unilateral acts by the US have severely undermined global anti-epidemic cooperation and have been strongly condemned by the international community. WHO Director-General Tan Desai solemnly pointed out that after the new crown vaccine is officially put into use in the future, due to the limited initial supply, the first task is to vaccinate specific populations in all countries, not everyone in some countries.

As a large responsible country, China has promised on many international occasions that it will work hard to make vaccines a universally accessible global public product and fully take care of the availability and affordability of vaccines in developing countries. This time, officially joining the "Implementation Plan" means that China adheres to multilateralism, fulfills its promises with practical actions, and promotes the construction of a human health community. As the largest economy that supports the "implementation plan", China's participation will help strengthen the "implementation plan"'s ability to negotiate with enterprises and encourage enterprises to increase their production capacity. At the same time, China will give priority to providing vaccines to developing countries in various forms such as donations and unpaid assistance. In this regard, the international community has expressed wide recognition.

The President of the European Commission von der Lein issued a letter welcoming China to join the "implementation plan." She pointed out that multilateralism is the key to achieving the global goal, which can make vaccines available everywhere and everyone in need. Berkeley, CEO of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, pointed out that China's participation in the "Implementation Plan" is a very positive development and provides greater impetus to efforts to ensure fair global access to the new crown vaccine. Reuters commented that China's participation in the "implementation plan" has greatly pushed the plan forward.

Currently, the number of people diagnosed with new coronary pneumonia worldwide has exceeded 40 million. Ensuring the safe, continuous supply and fair distribution of vaccines is essential for the world to overcome the new crown epidemic as soon as possible. China's actions have not only improved the feasibility and credibility of the "implementation plan," but also enabled more countries to move from waiting and seeing to joint action. So far, 184 countries and regions have joined the plan, bringing together powerful forces for global anti-epidemic cooperation. At the critical moment, China's responsibilities and actions have not only injected a "cardio boost" into global cooperation in the fight against the epidemic, but also clearly verified whether China is an opportunity or a threat to all countries in the world, and whether it is a partner or an opponent.2020/10