The US is sending 1.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to Nepal and another 500,000 to Bhutan, the White House has said, asserting that its donations around the world are without any strings attached.
“Today we are sending three million doses to Indonesia, 1.5 million doses to Nepal, 500,000 doses to Moldova, and 500,000 doses to Bhutan,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Friday at her daily news conference.
“There are no strings attached to our vaccines that we're providing. We're providing them around the world to save lives and to be a contributor to the global effort to fight the pandemic,” Psaki said in response to a question.
She said that with these shipments, in this week alone, the US has sent nearly 15 million doses to countries including Guatemala, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia, Afghanistan, and Vietnam.
Psaki said that in addition to the vaccines given to Indonesia, the US is also moving forward on plans to increase assistance for Indonesia’s broader COVID-19 response efforts.
"We recognise the difficult situation Indonesia currently finds itself in with a surge of COVID cases, and our thoughts are with all those in Indonesia who are affected,” she said.
Psaki acknowledged that there are more doses needed beyond the billion.
“I would note that the United States is far and away the largest contributor in the world to the fight against the pandemic, including specific doses of vaccines. The President has made clear that we will continue to build from here, and we're working on manufacturing capacity around the world and in the United States, and we will continue to contribute even beyond the billion doses,” she said.
