Japan to unveil specifics of 2nd donation of COVID-19 vaccines to Taiwan

ROC Central News Agency

07/05/2021 09:17 PM

Tokyo, July 5 (CNA) Japan will confirm in the next two days the number of additional COVID-19 vaccine doses it will donate to Taiwan later this month and when they will be delivered, Taiwan's representative to Japan Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said Monday.

The paperwork required to provide Taiwan with the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines was completed Monday, Hsieh said in a Facebook post.

It will be the second batch of AZ vaccines donated by Japan to Taiwan after a first shipment of 1.24 million vaccine doses of the same brand were sent to Taiwan on June 4.

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said June 25 that Japan will made a second donation to Taiwan of 1 million COVID-19 vaccines that will be delivered by mid-July.

Taiwan has signed contracts to purchase about 20 million vaccine doses from abroad, including 5.05 million doses of Moderna, 10 million doses of AZ, and 4.76 million of unspecified brands through the international COVAX vaccine-sharing scheme.

To date, Taiwan has taken delivery of three shipments of the AstraZeneca vaccine -- 117,000 doses purchased directly from AZ in March, 199,200 doses obtained through COVAX in April, and another 410,400 doses obtained via COVAX on May 19 -- in addition to the 1.24 million AZ vaccine doses from Japan.

It has also received 800,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine doses ordered and another 2.5 million Moderna doses as a donation from the United States.

(By Yang Ming-chu and Evelyn Kao)

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