A senior European diplomat calls for caution over the use of the proposed new rules that would govern exports of Covid-19 vaccines outside the EU. The rules were announced by the European Commission last Wednesday.
The tougher export controls proposed by the Commission would allow vaccine shipments to be assessed on the basis of the vaccination rate and vaccine exports from the destination country.
In a briefing to reporters, the diplomat said the EU and European countries should “be careful with the nuclear option of a pure export ban.” And if not used properly in “appropriate situations, it will become effective.”
“We speak as – I would say – as a pharmaceutical superpower, we have a huge concentration of drug companies in our territory,” whose presence “represents several percentages of our employment, of GNP,” the diplomat explained.
“We are very aware of the interdependence of these supply chains and we believe that if we use a tool to block exports, we can turn very quickly against ourselves,” the diplomat said, adding that he fears exposed to clear retaliation measures, breach of confidence and also diminished future possibilities for investment and trade. “
The existing export mechanism, focused on pharmaceutical companies, has been in place since the end of January and requires each Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing company to register its intention to export doses outside the EU. European countries, in collaboration with the Commission, decide whether to approve or reject shipments.
In figures released today by the Commission, more than 300 applications were made, with 43 million vaccines exported to 33 countries. Only a shipment of 250,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine from Italy to Australia was blocked.
The diplomat congratulated himself on this “excellent by-product” of the current mechanism. “Of course, we understand the need for more transparency, we are directly behind the Commission in this regard,” adding that “we now have a very precise view on how export flows are organized.”
Asked why the extended legislation was being introduced now, the diplomat said they felt it was “probably a sign of some nervousness reigning” in some European counties.
“The Commission is not deaf to what it is experiencing in the Member States, being cries for help or outrage and it is up to the Commission to reflect on this and put proposals on the table,” he added.
European leaders will meet on Thursday and Friday to discuss this proposal and the wider coronavirus crisis in Europe. If the session was closed, the extended export mechanism “would apply for up to six weeks from its entry into force”, according to the Commission’s draft text.