With major pharmaceutical firms already making progress in their respective vaccines for COVID-19, there is hope for the pandemic ending sooner than previously expected. As countries all over the world prepare for the coming of coronavirus vaccines, Donald Trump is set to sign an executive order to make sure American vaccinations come first before other countries.
Trump is to sign an executive order Tuesday that would entail COVID-19 vaccinations would see Americans infected with the disease take on a higher priority than the efforts to help other countries. The move would reaffirm Trump’s “America First” policy, according to people knowledgeable in the matter. The order also details certain government agencies such as the State Department and the United States Agency for International Development would be working together to help foreign allies and international partners obtain COVID-19 vaccines.
An administration official also revealed that the timeline for providing the vaccine to foreign allies would be based on supply and demand but it is expected to happen during the second quarter of 2021. By that time, president-elect Joe Biden has now taken office and may be forming his own policy for obtaining and distributing COVID-19 vaccines, which may put limits on Trump’s order. Despite Trump’s highly criticized approach to the pandemic in the country, the executive order would come at a very important time in vaccine development.
Trump will also be signing the order days before officials from the Food and Drug Administration are expected to meet Thursday. The officials would be reviewing the vaccines developed by Pfizer and Germany-based firm BioNTech.
At the same time, the Trump administration has now given the Philippines $29 million worth of defense equipment in the efforts to deter Chinese aggression in the highly-contested South China Sea. This move was overseen by acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller to the Philippines’ Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, who described the gift as a symbol of reaffirming the longtime alliance between the two countries.
This is the latest in the offerings of defense equipment by Washington to Manila. Previously, the US sent $18 million worth of precision weapons as well as a ScanEagle Unmanned Aerial System that went to the Philippine Navy. The US also sent $23.4 million in aid to victims of the recent typhoon that ravaged the country.