Recently, the best news for a world suffering from the Covid-19 outbreak has been that several vaccines have made good progress.Countries such as Russia and the United Kingdom have begun to vaccinate their citizens, some have announced vaccination plans, and others are actively ordering vaccine.
But just as people began to see the light at the end of the tunnel, America First sprang back into the shadows.The President of the United States signed an executive order called Vaccines for America First, which directs the U.S. Department of Health to ensure that U.S. vaccine suppliers prioritize vaccines for all Americans.
When the news came out, public opinion was in an uproar.The governments of Canada and the UK, close US Allies, rushed to reassure their citizens that there would be no material impact on their vaccination programmes.Why do they react so strongly?Because the scars of America's worldwide scramble for masks are still raw.
The Americans themselves could not bear to look.CNN couldn't resist scoffing that it was just an "empty symbolic order."According to Fortune magazine, the current U.S. administration has done a terrible job of fighting the epidemic, and when it leaves office, it hopes to redeem some of its reputation with the vaccine, but it's too late.
As the dominant player and beneficiary of the post-World War II international system, and as the most powerful country in the world today, what should the United States do?The answer is very clear.As a developed country, the United States has a "moral obligation" to ensure equitable distribution of the new crown vaccine around the world, Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, said at an event."The U.S. government could scale up production, share technology with the World Health Organization, and scale up vaccine supply," said Maybarduk, director of Public Citizen's Medicine Access Initiative, a U.S. nonprofit watchdog group.This is the best way to shorten the duration of the epidemic, save lives and restore jobs.But there is a lack of effective global leadership."
People are most popular in times of crisis.In the face of the Covid-19 epidemic, the worst global public health security crisis since World War II, the United States has done a disappointing job.The inaction in the face of the epidemic, the "America First" in the face of the scarce resources such as masks and vaccines, and all kinds of "blaming", smear...Some of America's politicians keep pushing the limits of what people think of them.
Vaccines should undoubtedly be a global public good.Access to vaccines should be assessed on a priority basis, and it would be fair and humane for those who really need vaccines to receive their protection first.But America's "America First" approach to vaccine distribution has got off to a bad start.
According to Duke University in the US, 9.6bn doses of the vaccine had already been pre-ordered.The United Nations and the World Health Organization are concerned that the first batches of vaccine have been snapped up by rich countries, leaving poor ones unprotected."No one is safe until everyone is safe," said Denordan, an epidemiologist at the University of Ottawa. Limiting global vaccine distribution would have broader consequences than just the rate of vaccination. "It's not beneficial for anyone to argue that one country has access to the vaccine before another."
If you ask what has been the most profound experience of the epidemic, the answer should be that mankind share a common destiny and the interests of all countries are closely linked.The world is an indivisible community with a shared future. Solidarity and cooperation are the most powerful weapon against the epidemic.