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ICRC to strive for uniform distribution of vaccines in ASEAN, delegation head says

According to Head of ICRC Regional Delegation for Russia, Belarus, and Moldova Ikhtiyar Aslanov, the ICRC is currently represented in five out of ten ASEAN countries

MOSCOW, October 15. /TASS/. The International Committee of the Red Cross is working on the equal distribution of vaccines against coronavirus in the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Head of ICRC Regional Delegation for Russia, Belarus, and Moldova Ikhtiyar Aslanov said at a conference dedicated to the 25th anniversary of Russia-ASEAN dialogue partnership and the 30th anniversary of their bilateral relations.

"We are aspiring for vaccines to cover all population groups, we call it ‘the last mile’- for all the population groups in ASEAN to have access to vaccines," he said.

According to him, the ICRC is currently represented in five out of ten ASEAN countries. "For example, in Indonesia we joined a government program in order to inoculate all residents in hard-to-reach regions," the ICRC representative noted.

The Red Cross is also interested in the work of ASEAN’s summits, he pointed out. "We want to listen to the decisions made there and be ready to react to political solutions," the representative added.

The international conference "Russia and ASEAN in Asia-Pacific Region: Dynamic of Cooperation, Regional Processes and the Global Context" is being held within the framework of the 13th Convention of the Russian International Studies Association (RISA): Thirty Years of the New Russia’s Foreign Policy at MGIMO.