US President Joe Biden had a telephonic conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi Monday night. The President pledged his support to Bharat her fight against Covid-19.
The phone call between the leaders followed a phone conversation between US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and his counterpart Ajit Doval.
In a big shift from last week when the United States had refused to lift the ban on the supply of raw materials for vaccines, Joe Biden promised “steadfast support for the people of India who have been impacted by the recent surge in COVID-19 cases.”
In response, Prime Minister Narendra Modi “conveyed his heartfelt appreciation for the offer of assistance and support from the Government of the United States of America.”
In what could be a signal for exporting vaccines, US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy tweeted that the US would be exporting sixty million vaccine doses soon.
In the past 48 hours, there has been a flurry of activity for extending support to Bharat.
The US was much criticised for refusing to lift the ban on the raw materials needed for the manufacturing of the vaccines.
Currently, Bharat has initiated the world’s largest vaccination programme against Covid-19. It has already administered more than 14.5 crore doses.
Currently two vaccines, Covishield, manufactured by Pune-based Serum Institute of India and Covaxin, developed and manufactured by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech, are being administered in Bharat.
