Vaccine diplomacy

A two-day summit opened in Belgrade on Monday to mark the 60th anniversary of the first conference of the Non-Aligned Movement, established to create a third global bloc in a world polarised by the East-West Cold War.

Delegations from more than 105 countries and nine international organizations are taking part in the gathering, hosted by Serbia.

It is explained how President Vui came to the center of attention in a specific "vaccine diplomacy".
Eleven days after COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic, TV audiences in Serbia were treated to an extraordinary sight.

President Joe Biden will on June 10 announce a "historic" U.S. donation of half a billion COVID-19 vaccine doses for 92 poorer countries, the White House said.

Turkey has ramped up "vaccine diplomacy" and the work on developing the country's own injection against COVID-19 is making progress, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has said, as the number of daily infections continues to rise.

To begin with, Serbia's seemingly ample supply of vaccines has come mainly from two sources: China and Russia. That is significant because both Beijing and Moscow have been keen to make Serbia a poster child for the use and success of their own respective cocktails.

The vaccine producer AstraZeneca must "catch up" on its promised deliveries to the EU before exporting doses elsewhere, the bloc's chief has said.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the company has to honour the contract it has with member states on Thursday evening.

She spoke after EU leaders held a summit to discuss vaccine supplies.