On Thursday, Beijing joined the World Health organization’s Covax initiative, an international effort to develop and distribute vaccines for COVID-19 so that developing economies are not left behind. So far, more than 160 countries, including China, have joined Covax, but the United States remains an obstacle.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying. . . . , in a statement on Friday, when China became the world’s largest economy. to join the association.
China’s consent to the initiative comes as the country faces an international reckoning over its handling of the pandemic, which began in the Chinese city of Wuhan. Public opinion on China is at an all-time low, but joining Covax is one way Beijing could redeem itself.
“Ensuring fair access is not just a question of equity; it’s the fastest way to end this pandemic, ”said Hatchett. The initiative insists that vaccines be mass-produced before approval is received, posing a large capital risk.
Beijing has not released any details of its deal with Covax, but China’s incorporation could provide some of that funding. It is also likely that WHO can take advantage of China’s enormous manufacturing capacity to increase vaccine production. China has nine coronavirus vaccines in development, four of which have entered final-stage trials.
Membership is protection against the failure of China’s vaccines, as Covax guarantees that all members will receive the first available vaccine.
Supporting Covax is also a possible political victory for Beijing. Globally, China’s public opinion has plummeted this year, depressed by governments blaming Beijing for the pandemic.
According to the Pew Research Center, the majority of people in 14 countries surveyed have a negative opinion of China, while a median of 61% think China mishandled the coronavirus. On the contrary, when it comes to global affairs, people have more faith in Xi Jinping to do “the right thing” than in US President Donald Trump, from 19% to 17%.
China’s addition to Covax could affirm that belief. According to Yoshikazu Kato, associate professor at the Asia Global Institute at the University of Hong Kong, China would prefer to continue forging bilateral partnerships in vaccine programs outside of WHO, choosing partners that are tailored to its political needs.
In July, China agreed to give the Philippines “priority” access to any vaccine made in China after President Rodrigo Duterte announced that he would not oppose Chinese action in the South China Sea. And in August, Canada, which disagrees with China over the arrest of Huawei’s CFO Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver two years ago, canceled a vaccine partnership with CanSino after Chinese customs delayed exports of the product. . . . . for four months.
The fact that China has joined the Covax multilateral framework “[shows] their ambition to be seen facing COVID-19 rather than the United States,” says Kato.
Trump began the process of withdrawing the United States, which has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, from the WHO in July, accusing the organization of being too lenient with China.
In September, the White House rejected the Covax initiative, saying the United States refused to “be limited by multilateral organizations influenced by the corrupt World Health Organization and China.”
Clearly, the US withdrawal has left room for China to intervene.
