U.S. to share 25 mln COVID-19 vaccine doses globally

JAKE SULLIVAN: “... our goal in sharing our vaccines is in service of ending the pandemic globally. Our overarching aim is to get as many safe and effective vaccines to as many people as fast as possible. It's as simple as that.”

The White House on Thursday laid out a plan for the U.S. to share 25 million surplus COVID-19 vaccine doses with the world as U.S. President Biden comes under pressure globally to share more shots.

JAKE SULLIVAN: "But perhaps most important, this is just the right thing to do."

During a White House COVID-19 briefing, U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said at least 75 percent or nearly 19 million doses would be shared through the global COVAX sharing program and at least another 25 percent would be shared with countries experiencing surges and those in crisis.

JAKE SULLIVAN: “We’re sharing them in a wide-range of countries within Latin America and the Caribbean, South and Southeast Asia and across Africa in coordination with the African Union. This includes prioritizing our neighbors here in our hemispheres... And as the president has said, the United States will not use its vaccines to secure favors from other countries.”

The White House on Thursday also said it would lift some restrictions to allow other countries to more easily buy U.S.-made supplies for vaccine production.

For months, the White House has remained focused on getting Americans vaccinated after the coronavirus killed more than half a million people in the U.S. within the last year.

But the president has promised that the United States would become a supplier to other countries and pledged to send abroad at least 20 million doses of the Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines, on top of 60 million AstraZeneca doses he had already planned to give to other countries – making his goal of getting 80 million doses distributed by the end of June internationally.