“The autocrats used the pandemic to abuse power and strengthen their regimes. Countries need to be supported with vaccines and concrete aid against COVID-19,” President Ilir Meta told the International Conference “New Ways to Take Care – The World After the COVID-19 Pandemic, Multilateralism for a Better Future,” taking place in Rome, organized by the Council of the European Corporation for Africa and the Middle East. Meta stated that the pandemic turned out to be a threat to the world in a race with time that put pressure on nations.
The Albanian President said in the event attended by Presidents and senior state officials, world politics and health personalities that the coronavirus pandemic posed a major threat to the world and to all of humanity. “What happened and is happening is unprecedented in more than a hundred years! It took us all by surprise! The pandemic called into question the effectiveness and capacity of states to prevent and control this dangerous virus. It challenged and tested the spirit of solidarity between nations, strategic alliances, as well as international cooperation,” he said, adding that moreover, the end is not yet in sight!
According to him, meanwhile it turned into a vaccine race. “It was a race between the great powers, mainly those of the United States, Britain and the European Union with other countries like Russia and China. The Western Alliance was positioned and was in charge of the production and distribution of vaccines. But those countries were not the only ones. Russia and China proactively produced and exported their vaccines to countries in urgent need and under pressure to protect their peoples!” noted the Albanian head of state.
In addition he said that COVAX was the promising first step of solidarity, but it should be followed by other mechanisms and agreements in diagnosing infectious agents as early as possible. “Stockpiles of vaccines collected from rich countries need to be sent urgently to countries in need, especially to Africa and the Middle East, because significant quantities of vaccines are approaching their expiration date,” Meta said in conclusion of his remarks. / Argumentum.al
