PUTRAJAYA – The United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken today commended Malaysia’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and expressed appreciation for the latter country’s contribution of vaccines to Covax, a worldwide vaccine sharing initiative.
“This is deeply appreciated, and is evidence of real leadership,” he said during a joint press conference with Malaysia’s Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah.
Blinken said during a bilateral meeting with Saifuddin earlier that both had discussed plans to overcome current challenges during the pandemic and build back better in the event another one takes place.
“We have to take this moment to strengthen the global health security system so that next time, we are better able to hopefully prevent, certainly detect, and, as necessary, effectively deal with a new pandemic,” he said.
Blinken arrived in Kuala Lumpur last night for a two-day working visit. He had earlier made a stop in Jakarta, Indonesia, and will make a trip to Bangkok, Thailand next.
The US, he said, is also working hard on making good its commitment to provide vaccines again through Covax so that they will be equitably distributed.
“Through next year, the US expects to donate 1.2 billion vaccines around the world without strings attached. We have a commitment to see what can be done to close the gap in terms of vaccine accessibility,” Blinken said. – Bernama, December 15, 2021
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