Over the past several weeks, the European Union has exported 34 million coronavirus vaccines to dozens of countries. The E.U. is facing vaccine shortages at home despite continuing to export the vaccines, and its vaccine rollout is trailing behind the United States, Britain and Israel. The E.U. had been criticized after refusing a small shipment to Australia last week, but the export numbers show the E.U. is far from being protectionist.
6.5 percent of people in the E.U. have been vaccinated while nearly 58 percent of Israelis have received at least one dose of the vaccine. The European Commision has debated releasing the export data after suffering a political blow from the slow rollout. The bloc was weeks behind in sealing deals with pharmaceutical firms last year, but did secure a large portfolio of vaccines. The supply shocks began once rollout started in December, and the second quarter is expected to see an increased supply.
Read more:E.U. Exports Millions of Covid Vaccine Doses Despite Supply Crunch at Home