TORONTO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd March, 2021) AstraZeneca has indicated to the Canadian government that its order of 20 million coronavirus vaccines doses will be delivered to Canada in the second quarter of 2021 without problems and or interference from the United States, Minister of Public Services and Procurement Anita Anand said.
The administration of President Joe Biden has said that the United States will not be sharing its supplies of the coronavirus vaccine until the US public is inoculated. Canada already receives its supplies of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines from Europe after former US President Donald Trump signed an executive order to prioritize domestic distribution of vaccines over their shipments to foreign countries.
"On the question of assurances from the United States: we are in close touch... with [AstraZeneca] that has indicated it has not seen any problems with the export of doses to Canada," Anand told reporters on Monday.
Anand said the Canadian embassy in Washington will work to ensure that the shipment from the United States will make it across the border, citing the Trudeau government's ability to procure personal protective equipment last spring after the United States pursued an aggressive approach that undercut Canada, among other countries.
However, the procurement minister conceded that the Canadian government inked vaccine deals in way that would allow for vaccine shipments from a variety of production facilities.
