EU executive eyes new Pfizer deal for 1.8 billion COVID vaccines "very soon"

Reuters
·1 min read
FILE PHOTO: COVID-19 vaccination campaign in Nice

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union's executive said on Friday it hoped the bloc would soon be able to finalise a new contract with Pfizer for up to 1.8 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to cover booster shots and the inoculation of children in the coming years.

Spokespeople for the European Commission declined to comment on whether France was delaying talks on finalising the deal, as had been reported by German newspaper Die Welt.

"The college of (EU) Commissioners, we're hoping they'll be able to give the green light to the new contract... We hope the College will be able to give the go ahead very soon," a spokesman told a news briefing in EU hub Brussels.

(Reporting by Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by John Chalmers)