Published in: The Daily Star
Date: 16 July, 2021

Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar gave no assurance about resuming vaccine supply to Bangladesh anytime soon at a meeting with his Bangladesh counterpart AK Abdul Momen in Uzbekistan yesterday.

“The Indian foreign minister said they are increasing vaccine production and also expediting inoculation. But a large number of people are yet to be vaccinated in India. At this moment, India is not considering export of vaccine,” a diplomatic source told this newspaper from Uzbekistan last night.

Jaishankar said they will start exporting vaccine only after meeting the local demand, the source said.

He, however, expressed his happiness that Bangladesh has managed to secure vaccines from multiple sources including Covax, according to a statement from the foreign ministry last night.

India halted export of Covid vaccine in March after Serum Institute of India supplied 7 million AstraZeneca jabs to Bangladesh. As per an agreement, Serum is supposed to ship 30 million doses.

At the bilateral meeting on the sideline of Central and South Asia Connectivity Challenges and Opportunities in Tashkent yesterday, Momen told Jaishankar that Bangladesh desperately looked for alternative sources of Covid vaccines after India halted its supply.

China is now supplying Sinopharm vaccine to Bangladesh and jabs are also coming from the US, the EU and Japan under the Covax facility.

Momen and Jaishankar discussed bilateral and regional connectivity, Covid situation, and also Rohingya repatriation.

They also emphasised the need for resuming the activities of various joint mechanisms soon after the covid scenario in both countries improves.

Later, Momen had a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

Momen thanked the Chinese government for standing by the people of Bangladesh at an extremely difficult time by sending vaccine doses as gifts and also opening the commercial supply line.

Momen reiterated his request to initiate vaccine production in Bangladesh with partnership of Bangladeshi and Chinese stakeholders.

Wang Yi assured him of the Chinese government’s support on this issue.

Both the foreign ministers agreed to continue to work further towards Rohingya repatriation. They also underscored the need for resuming tripartite dialogue.

Momen will leave Uzbekistan for Dhaka on July 18.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/health/disease/coronavirus/fallouts-fightback/vaccine/news/astrazeneca-vaccine-no-assurance-india-resuming-supply-bangladesh-2131521