WHO assured that available vaccines are effective against “all variants” of COVID-19

Currently available and approved vaccines are effective against “all variants of the virus”., said Thursday the World Health Organization (WHO), which nevertheless asked to continue acting with “caution” in the face of covid-19.

So far, WHO has included vaccines for Pfizer-BioNTech, AstraZeneca, Johnson & johnson, Modern Yes Sinopharm; Chinese vaccine approval is also expected in the coming weeks Sinovac and russian Sputnik V.

On the other hand, if the health situation is improving in Europe, the evolution of the pandemic does not yet allow the safe resumption of international travel due to “a persistent threat and new uncertainties”warned Hans Kluge, WHO director for Europe.

“It’s an unpredictable threat”said Catherine Smallwood, emergency manager at WHO Europe. “The pandemic has not ended.”

According to the institution’s data, across the region (which extends to part of Central Asia), the number of new cases has fallen by 60% in one month, going from 1.7 million in mid-April to 685,000 last week.

“We are going in the right direction, but we must remain vigilant (…) the increase in mobility, physical interactions and meetings can lead to an increase in transmission in Europe”, insisted the regional director, affirming however that essential movements were still authorized.

The reduction of social restrictions must be carried out in parallel with an increase in detection, tracing and vaccination.

“There is no zero risk”Kluge reiterated. “Vaccines may be a light at the end of the tunnel, but we cannot be blinded by that light.”

European Parliament supports the release of patents

At the same time, given the shortage of vaccines, especially for developing countries, European Parliament urged European Union to support request for temporary exemption from vaccine patents against the coronavirus, in the face of skepticism from Brussels and the main Member States.

The World Health Organization, India Yes South Africa They called for the temporary suspension of patents in a bid to help increase shipments to poorer countries struggling to immunize their populations.

Lawmakers narrowly passed an amendment that calls on the bloc “to support the World Trade Organization (WTO) initiative of India and South Africa for a temporary exemption from intellectual property rights on vaccines, COVID-19 equipment and treatments, and urges pharmaceutical companies to share their knowledge and data. “

EU leaders said this month they were ready to discuss patent exemptions after the US president, Joe Biden, support the plan, but asked for more details on the proposal and urged other major producers to increase their exports of much-needed jabs first.

The European Commissioner for Trade, Valdis Dombrovskis, told lawmakers on Wednesday that Brussels will present its own proposal to the WTO focused on boosting production and liberalizing exports.

He insisted that Brussels engage constructively to see if a temporary patent exemption could help boost global supplies and access to doses.

La jefa of the WTO, Okonjo-Iweala accident, He will meet EU trade ministers for talks in Brussels on Thursday.

EU stresses that it has exported more than 200 million doses of vaccinesWhile other key manufacturers, such as the United States and Britain, have only shipped limited supplies overseas.

Bloc officials said that the hoarding of essential ingredients needed for vaccines by some countries was a bigger obstacle than patent protection.

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