COVID jabs pledged for peacekeepers
China’s donation of vaccines to UN shows commitment to multilateralism
China’s ambassador to the United Nations said on March 15 that the country will donate 300,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines to UN peacekeepers, with priority given to peacekeeping missions in Africa.
Ambassador Zhang Jun wrote to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres informing him of the donation, China’s UN mission said in a statement. It followed an announcement by Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Feb 17, during a UN Security Council meeting, about Beijing’s plan to donate the vaccines.
The mission said China is fulfilling its promise to make its vaccines a global public good and contribute to vaccine availability in developing countries.
It also demonstrates China’s firm and continuous support to the UN and multilateralism, the mission added.
“As one of the champions of (the) safety and security issue under the ‘Action for peacekeeping’ (A4P) initiative of the UN secretary-general, China attaches great importance to the safety and security of peacekeepers, and supports early COVID-19 vaccination for UN peacekeepers to protect their health and help them better perform their duties,” it added.
The mission said the Chinese government will work closely with the UN Secretariat to make vaccines donated by China available to the peacekeepers at an early date.
The fight against the COVID-19 pandemic is the most pressing task facing the world today, and vaccines are the most powerful weapon to win the battle, the mission said.
It stressed that China attaches great importance to the equitable distribution of vaccines, especially in regard to accessibility and affordability in developing countries.
As of March 15, China had provided vaccine assistance to 69 countries and two international organizations. It also has exported vaccines to 28 countries, the mission noted, adding: “More and more countries and people are benefiting from Chinese vaccines.”
“China will continue to work in solidarity with countries around the world to make unremitting efforts to win the final victory of the global fight against the pandemic,” the mission said.
According to data from the UN, as of Jan 31, there were 85,782 UN peacekeepers comprising military, police and civilians, serving in 12 peacekeeping operations, with six of those in Africa. More than 71,000 peacekeepers are deployed to the continent.
Also according to the world body, 2,465 Chinese troops and police are currently serving in UN peace operations.
China’s armed forces have sent more
than 40,000 peacekeepers to 25 UN peacekeeping missions over the past 30 years, China said in a white paper released in September.
China also has been a strong supporter of global vaccine distribution, shipping large numbers of its vaccines to countries such as Mexico, Hungary, Bahrain and Chile.
Mexico turned to China to fill a vaccine shortfall with an order of 22 million doses.
In the Middle East, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates were among the first countries to approve Chinesedeveloped vaccines.
The UAE conducted a clinical trial of a vaccine from Chinese drugmaker Sinopharm and announced that it was 86 percent effective at the completion of the trial’s phase III stage. Some 31,000 people participated in the trial.