India will be a 'key recipient' of Biden's allocation plan of 25 million COVID-19 vaccines: Envoy

New Delhi, June 04: India will be a big part of US President Joe Biden's newly-launched Global Allocation Plan of 25 million COVID-19 vaccines to neighbours and partner countries.

"India will be a significant recipient of US vaccines as India has been included in both the identified categories in the allocation announced today- direct supply to neighbours and partner countries, and under the COVAX initiative," India's Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu said.

"Now, India will figure in both categories, and will get vaccines as per allocation under COVAX and direct supply. So first would be the COVAX initiative in which India is included in Asia. Second, through direct supply to neighbours and partner countries, that includes India, Korea, Canada and Mexico," he added.

The US has also announced the removal of the Defense Production Act, which means no more priority supply will now be required. This will furthers smoothen the supply chains for vaccine manufacturing, particularly for AstraZeneca and Novavax, he mentioned.

The US has also announced the removal of the Defense Production Act, which means no more priority supply will now be required. This will furthers smoothen the supply chains for vaccine manufacturing, particularly for AstraZeneca and Novavax, he mentioned.

The US is set to allocate 75 per cent - nearly 1.9 crore of the first tranche of 2.5 crore doses - of unused COVID-19 vaccines from its stockpile through the UN-backed COVAX global vaccine sharing programme to countries in South and Southeast Asia as well as Africa as part of his administration's framework for sharing 80 million (8 crore) vaccines globally by the end of June.

According to a White House fact sheet, nearly 19 million vaccines will be shared through COVAX.

Of these approximately six million for South and Central America to the following countries: Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Peru, Ecuador, Paraguay, Bolivia, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, Haiti, and other Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries, as well as the Dominican Republic.

Approximately seven million for Asia to the following countries: India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Maldives, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Laos, Papua New Guinea, Taiwan, and the Pacific Islands, it said.

Vice President Kamala Harris spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and three other world leaders and informed them that the US will start sharing the first 25 million (2.5 crore) doses of COVID vaccines to their respective countries.

Officials in New Delhi said that Modi and Harris discussed ongoing efforts to strengthen the health supply chain between the US and India, including in the area of vaccine manufacturing. They highlighted the potential of the India-US partnership as well as the QUAD vaccine initiative in addressing the long-term health impact of the pandemic.

The prime minister also said he hopes to welcome Vice President Harris in India soon after the normalisation of the global health situation.