Bloomberg has learned of China’s refusal to receive COVID vaccines from the U.S.

Bloomberg reported on China’s refusal to receive COVID vaccines from the United States

Washington says Beijing’s “vaccine nationalism” is leading to unnecessary deaths, but Chinese authorities say the COVID-19 spread situation is under control

The US authorities offered the Chinese government to supply advanced mRNA vaccines needed to control the spread of the coronavirus infection COVID-19 but were denied. It was reported by Bloomberg agency with reference to its sources. The agency’s sources said that given the particular “political sensitivity” of the issue, the supply of vaccines had been proposed to be arranged through intermediaries.

According to Bloomberg, offers to supply vaccines were made by high-ranking U.S. diplomats, including during a December visit to China by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Kritenbrink and Laura Rosenberger, who oversees relations with China at the U.S. National Security Council. U.S. authorities, alarmed by an increase in infections in China and the emergence of new strains of the virus, have intensified their efforts in recent weeks, but have been rebuffed each time. Contacts continue, but Chinese officials say they have the situation under control and do not need help, the agency’s interlocutors said.

A representative of the Chinese Embassy in Washington said that Chinese-developed vaccines are highly effective and that their production not only meets the country’s domestic needs, but also creates opportunities for export.

Referring to the Chinese authorities’ reluctance to agree to receive vaccines from the United States, Bloomberg notes that Beijing has always been reluctant to accept outside help during crises, and in the current climate, agreeing would demonstrate China’s inability to develop an effective mRNA vaccine on its own.

“Even in the midst of the catastrophic COVID-19 outbreak, Beijing continues to demonstrate vaccine nationalism, a decision that will surely lead to unnecessary deaths,” said Jude Blanchette, chair of the Department of Chinese Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

On January 6, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning stated that the situation with COVID-19 in the PRC is currently under control. At the same time, the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention said that the likelihood of a large-scale outbreak in China caused by XBB, a subvariant of the COVID-19 omicron strain, is estimated as low in the short term, Xinhua News Agency reported.