US to send 2.5 million Covid-19 vaccine doses to Thailand and Cambodia

The president has escalated international assistance on vaccinations as demand within the US fades. PHOTO: EPA-EFE

WASHINGTON (BLOOMBERG) - The US is sending millions of doses of coronavirus vaccines to Thailand and Cambodia as President Joe Biden's administration continues distributing the American stockpile around the world.

In all, 1.5 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine left the US on Wednesday (July 28) headed for Thailand, where they're expected to arrive on Friday, a White House official said.

An additional 1.06 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine were being flown to Cambodia as part of Covax, the global vaccine procurement initiative intended to secure inoculations for low- and middle-income nations, the official said. They will arrive there on two flights on Friday and Saturday.

The Biden administration has sent more than 80 million doses to other countries, the official said, passing its goal of sending 80 million doses of the Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines to other countries this summer. The US intends to donate at least 580 million doses abroad overall.

The administration has ordered 500 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine for inoculations abroad beginning next month. The president has escalated international assistance on vaccinations as demand within the US fades.

The administration has stressed that the doses it shares come with no strings attached for the recipients and that its sole goal is to fight the virus worldwide.

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