The European Union is reaching out to the US to obtain more AztraZeneca vaccines, as the bloc is trying to fill supply shortages.
According to the Financial Times, the European Commission intends to ask the US government to export AztraZeneca vaccines produced in their territory.
With the added vaccines, the Commission hopes it could fill its current vaccine shortfalls. The English-Swedish pharmaceutical company has failed to meet delivery targets, due to problems in EU production sites.
The US, for their part, has indicated that all the 300 million AztraZeneca vaccines planned to be produced on US territory would be used to vaccinate Americans. However, as this vaccine hasn’t been approved by US regulators yet, the EU might still have a chance to receive a favourable response.
The EU also wants to make sure that the US doesn’t impede exports of raw materials needed for vaccine production. Lipid nanoparticles are needed to produce the Pfizer-BioNtech and Moderna vaccines, with both companies using new mRNA technology.
The Brussels Times
