Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin's Regular Press Conference on February 1, 2021 |
2021-02-01 23:15 |
In the early hours today, a batch of inactivated COVID-19 vaccines donated by the Chinese government to Pakistan arrived in Islamabad. It was the first batch of vaccine aid provided by the Chinese government to another country and a concrete step in honoring President Xi's pledge of making COVID-19 vaccines a global public good. China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic partners. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the two sides have been supporting and assisting each other. Last year, at China's most trying moments, Pakistan was among the first countries to donate medical supplies to us in a great act of valuable support. When the epidemic situation in China eased, we supported Pakistan's fight against the virus through various means including donating medical supplies and sending medical experts. Vaccine cooperation is an important part of the joint efforts by China and Pakistan to fight COVID-19. It demonstrates not only our sincere mutual assistance as all-weather strategic partners, but also our joint efforts as two developing countries to make vaccines a global public good and promote their accessibility and affordability in fellow developing countries. The virus respects no boundaries and we are all in this together. Solidarity and cooperation is our most powerful weapon in this war. We hope all parties will take real action, provide more vaccines to developing countries, and contribute to the equitable distribution and application of vaccines across the world so that we can defeat the virus at an early date. Bloomberg: Myanmar's military detained Aung San Suu Kyi, declared a state of emergency for a year and voided her party's November election victory. The army chief's office said that the actions were taken in response to alleged voter fraud, and the military would hold a free and fair election after the emergency is over. We are wondering if China has any comment on what is happening in Myanmar? Wang Wenbin: We have noted what happened in Myanmar, and we are learning more information on the situation. China is a friendly neighbor of Myanmar. We hope that all parties in Myanmar will properly handle their differences under the constitutional and legal framework and maintain political and social stability. CNR: You just said that Pakistan is the first to receive vaccine doses from China as aid. Can you tell us if China plans to offer vaccines as aid to other countries as well or export vaccines to them? To date how many countries have you exported vaccines to? Wang Wenbin: China has been acting through concrete actions on President Xi Jinping's solemn commitment of making COVID-19 vaccines, developed and deployed in China, a global public good, thus contributing to greater accessibility and affordability of vaccines in developing countries. That's what we've been saying and what we've been doing. First, apart from Pakistan, China is also providing vaccine aid to Brunei, Nepal, the Philippines, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Palestine, Belarus, Sierra Leone, Zimbabwe and Equatorial Guinea, altogether 13 developing countries. Going forward, we will also assist another 38 developing countries with vaccines. We also take an active part in the WHO-led COVAX and provide vaccines through this platform to developing countries. Second, China supports Chinese companies in conducting joint vaccine R&D and production with foreign partners. Vaccines made by Sinopharm and Sinovac have been exported to countries including the UAE, Morocco, Indonesia, Turkey, Brazil and Chile where clinical studies have been conducted. Third, China supports relevant companies in exporting vaccines to countries in urgent need that have approved Chinese vaccines and authorized their emergency use. For instance, Serbia has started vaccination with recently imported Chinese-made vaccines. More and more countries are approving the domestic use of Chinese vaccines. The whole world needs to pull together in order to defeat the pandemic. China will continue to provide in a timely manner, to the best of its capability, vaccines to relevant countries, especially the developing countries, and contribute its share to building a global community of health for all. We also hope the international community will work together to promote the equitable allocation and use of vaccines globally to make sure developing countries have access to and can afford them. Prasar Bharati: This is regarding the Indian ship stuck at Caofeidian port for many months. How long will China take to determine when the cargo can be unloaded? Why is the Chinese government not able to impress the charterer to let the ships leave the port or at least allow a crew change? Reports also suggest there is laxity in the provision of medical aid to the crew who are suffering. They are not getting the medical aid in time. What's your comment? Wang Wenbin: The relevant Chinese authorities have been in close communication with the Indian side, responding in a timely manner to their appeals and putting forward practical suggestions for crew change. We have provided necessary convenience and assistance while adhering to epidemic prevention rules. As to whether the ship charterer is willing to adjust the shipping arrangement, it is the charterer's decision to make. Kyodo News Agency: I have a question about the Olympic Games. February 4 marks the one-year countdown to the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games. What does China think is the significance of hosting the Winter Olympics under such circumstances when COVID-19 is spreading around the world? Then there is the uncertainty about whether the Tokyo Olympics will be held this summer. If the Tokyo Olympic Games cannot be held as promised, what will be the impact on the Beijing Winter Olympics? Wang Wenbin: On your first question, during the phone call last week between President Xi Jinping and International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach, the two sides reached important consensus on overcoming the impact of the pandemic to ensure a safe and successful Beijing Winter Olympic Games, and on promoting the sustained and healthy development of the Olympic Movement. The Chinese side has issued a press release on that phone call. I would like to emphasize that China took the lead in bringing the domestic epidemic situation under control and realizing economic recovery, thus creating favorable conditions for the successful hosting of the Beijing Winter Olympics. We have strictly implemented prevention and control measures, overcome the impact of the epidemic, and actively promoted the steady progress of all preparation work for the games, which have won full recognition and strong support from the international community including the IOC. We are fully confident that the Beijing Winter Olympics wi |