Biden chose to make the announcement in the U.K. ahead of the G-7 summit.
President Joe Biden on Thursday announced his plan to buy an additional 500 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine to distribute to lower-income countries, increasing the U.S. commitment to fighting the pandemic across the globe, a key goal of the G-7 summit.
"That's a historic step. The largest single purchase and donation COVID-19 vaccines by any single country ever. Importantly, this is the mRNA vaccine, which is proven to be extremely effective against COVID-19 and every known variant of that virus thus far," Biden said, touting the announcement in the Cornwall village of St. Ives, the United Kingdom seaside resort village where world leaders are gathering.
"These half a billion vaccines will start to be shipped in August, as quickly as they roll off the manufacturing line. 200 million of these doses will be delivered this year, 2021. And 300 million more will be delivered in the first half of 2022," Biden added.
On a call with reporters previewing Biden’s announcement Thursday, a senior administration official clarified that the 500 million doses are in addition to the 80 million doses the U.S. has already announced it would share around the world by the end of 2021 -- for a total of 580 million. slotpg
The president has sought to highlight the importance of democracies during his first foreign trip as president, and reestablish the United States as a leader on the world stage under his administration. In his remarks, Biden touted the investment in the global vaccination effort as an American duty.
"This is about our responsibility, our humanitarian obligation to save as many lives as we can, and our responsibility to our values. We value the inherent dignity of all people. In times of trouble, Americans reach out to offer help and to offer a helping hand. That's who we are," he said.
Biden also stressed getting vaccines distributed around the world was also in American’s best interest to keep variants in check, and improve the global economy following the impacts of the pandemic.
Biden had previously criticized other countries, like Russia and China, for seeking to curry favor with their vaccine programs, and argued the new surge of doses from the U.S. were being offered with “no strings attached.”
