US to export 60 million AstraZeneca doses

The US plans to export up to 60 million doses of the vaccine produced by AstraZeneca to needy countries, the White House said on Monday.

Around 10 million doses could be exported as early as in the "coming weeks" after a review by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), said spokeswoman Jen Psaki.

She added that another 50 million doses are still in different stages of production and will be exported in the coming months.

How many vaccines does the US have?

The US has received 600 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines made by Moderna and BioNTech-Pfizer.

Those doses are sufficient to vaccinate its entire population, without needing to use the AstraZeneca vaccine. The country plans to vaccinate all adults by end-May.

This isn't the first time that the US has said that it will loan jabs. In March, it loaned about 4 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to Mexico and Canada.

Where will the vaccines go?

The US is yet to decide which countries will be receiving the 60 million doses, although the country has received requests from Mexico and Canada.

It was also not clear whether the vaccines would be loaned, sold or donated.

It is believed that India may be one of the largest recipients.

The US is now coming forward to help India, after the country reported a record number of cases on Monday.

US President Joe Biden promised Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on a phone call on Monday that the US would give "steadfast support for the people of India who have been impacted by the recent surge in COVID-19 cases."

"The US is providing a range of emergency assistance, including oxygen-related supplies, vaccine materials and therapeutics," Biden reportedly told Modi.

Global drive to help India

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UK has also come forward to help India.

The WHO is sending oxygen and laboratory supplies to the pandemic-stricken country.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that nine airline containers containing ventilators and oxygen concentrators would be sent to India.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Monday that Germany is racing to get oxygen and medicine to the country. France has also pledged to send eight oxygen production units.

am/rt (dpa, AP, AFP)