Vaccine supply to India a priority, says Jack Sullivan

India was in America’s priority list for supply of vaccines and its raw materials, National Security Advisor Jack Sullivan has said. “Our approach also prioritises…countries like India, Nepal, the Philippines, and others undergoing surges right now… We will continue to donate from our excess supply as that supply is delivered to us. We will work with our international partners to get ahead of the virus, to follow the science, and to help countries in crisis,” Sullivan told reporters on Thursday as he explained US priorities in distribution of 25 million vaccines.

The factors that shaped the US decision included achieving global coverage, responding to surges and other specific urgent situations and public health needs, and helping as many countries as possible who requested vaccines, Sullivan said.

In a separate briefing, the US State Department said that an increase in manufacturing capacity of Covid-19 vaccines in India has the potential to become a game changer well beyond its borders indicating that it may supply vaccine raw material in near future.


US vice-president Kamala Harris had discussed vaccine sharing during her phone conversation with Narendra Modi on Thursday. The issue had figured when foreign minister S Jaishankar met senior members of the Biden administration last week in Washington.

“It’s important to us because India has suffered immensely from the outbreak. Virtually, no element of Indian society has been left untouched by this horrible scourge. That is why we have spoken of the focus on increased manufacturing in India,” state department spokesperson Ned Price said on Thursday.

“The increased manufacturing capacity in India, the volume of capacity has the potential to be a game changer well beyond India”s borders. And that's precisely why this arrangement was reached and announced in the context of the Quad,” he said.

Earlier this year at the first virtual Quad summit of leaders from Australia, India, Japan and the United States, it was decided to work together to increase India’s vaccine manufacturing capacity.

“Even before this announcement today, we have spoken of the focus on increased manufacturing in India but also the bilateral support that we have provided to India as a means to help the country address this. A hundred million dollars, hundreds of millions of dollars in total – half a billion dollars, I believe, $500 million – has been put towards this, including by the US government,” Price said.