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Polish president talks to Chinese leader about possible COVID-19 vaccine deal: aide

01.03.2021 16:47
Polish President Andrzej Duda has talked to China’s leader Xi Jinping about a possible purchase of a Chinese COVID-19 vaccine, a top aide said on Monday.
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Polish President Andrzej Duda
Polish President Andrzej Duda Photo: PAP/Radek Pietruszka

A potential deal on shots will be subject to “further arrangements at the intergovernmental level," said Duda’s aide, Krzysztof Szczerski.

He added that Duda broached the topic of vaccines during phone talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping after a request by Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.

Morawiecki announced in December that his government had secured vaccines for his country from six leading international drug makers.

The European Union, of which Poland is part, has struck deals to secure shots from Pfizer-BioNTech, AstraZenecaModernaCureVacSanofi-GSK, and Johnson & Johnson.

Delays in deliveries

But Polish politicians have voiced frustration about delays in deliveries.

Morawiecki last week called on the EU’s executive, the European Commission, to use its clout to ensure the timely execution of agreements by international drug makers.

As of Monday, over 3.3 million coronavirus vaccine shots had been administered across Poland, including over 2.1 million first doses and almost 1.2 million second doses, according to officials.

Poland on Monday reported 4,786 new coronavirus infections and 24 more deaths, bringing its total number of cases during the pandemic to 1,711,772 and fatalities to 43,793.

(pk)

Source: PAP/IAR

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