WASHINGTON, March 16. /TASS/. The United States is not in a position to discourage Brazil or any other nation from purchasing any coronavirus vaccines if they are certified by national regulators, a US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) official told TASS on Tuesday when asked to comment on a HHS report saying that the US tried to dissuade Brazil from buying the Russian Sputnik V vaccine.
"The U.S. is not in a position to comment on vaccines that have not been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration for use in the U.S. Nor are we in a position to discourage Brazil or any other nation from accepting vaccines that have been authorized by their respective regulators," the official said.
"The United States is a firm believer in the need for vaccines that meet the minimum clinical standards of efficacy, regardless of country of origin, as part of national and global strategies to combat the pandemic. We support the rapid rollout of safe, high quality, and effective vaccines," he added.
The US Department of Health and Human Services said in its annual report, which was issued under the previous administration, that its Office of Global Affairs (OGA) was working to combat "malign influences in the Americas," for which ends pressure was exerted on Brazil to make it reject the Russian vaccine.
As follows from the report, a number of countries, including Russia, Cuba, and Venezuela, are seeking to increase their influence in the region, to the detriment of US safety and security and the US is taking diplomatic effort to persuade countries of this region to reject their assistance.
"Examples include using OGA’s Health Attache office to persuade Brazil to reject the Russian COVID-19 vaccine," the government report said.
The HHS official refrained from saying whether the current administration shared this position or not.
Brazil’s health ministry said on March 12 it has signed a contract for the Russian Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, which is expected to reach that country in April, May, and June.
Russian president’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov said earlier on Tuesday that Russia strongly objected against any competition between coronavirus vaccines and condemned politicization of vaccine-related matters.