Perplex Vaccine Diplomacy across globe and a winning game for India
23 Mar 2021 12:42:40
"Geography has made us neighbors. History has made us friends. Economics has made us partners and necessity has made us allies. Those whom god has so joined together, let no man put asunder."
~ John F Kennedy
The kind of relations that countries across the globe are witnessing today are not alien. The diplomatic policies that even the biggest of world powers as well as smaller countries are developing in the present scenario, have all been observed during the filthiest of the wars of the nations; the World War II. But what is new is that India is leading the diplomatic regime around the globe today, unlike how it was struggling for its freedom back during the war. India's successful vaccine diplomacy is evident of the developmental graph of the country and the progressive path it has walked until now.
The import and export of vaccines around the globe is largely dependent on the diplomatic relations that they share with each other. Rather that is the only decisive factor behind the vaccine trade. That is exactly why India has been in the number one position in the world in case of the vaccine diplomacy. India, through Prime Minister Narendra Modi has strengthened its diplomacy with nations, big as well as small, across the globe over all these years. This practice of the Prime Minister and the several foreign visits in the pre-COVID world, which the opposition often made a subject of mockery, has today helped us gain the dominance in vaccine trade as well as vaccine diplomacy in the world.
The entire world is looking at India with a hope to recover from the pandemic with the help of vaccination that India is gifting to its friendly nations and also exporting to. India's vaccine diplomacy has worked extremely well during the pandemic. However, there are some nations whose foreign policies have completely twisted their vaccine trade. Foremost, standing in the line is China.
The failure of Chinese Vaccine trade
China had lost the race of vaccine trade even before the vaccine was formulated, because of the suspicious outbreak of the virus from China's Wuhan province. The outbreak was further followed by China's desperate efforts to hide several facts regarding the outbreak of the pandemic, which had eventually become open to public and the world is yet not sure what all information is China still holding back from the world. Usually, China is leading any kind of trade war but in case of COVID vaccines, China had lost the battle long time ago. This is because, China has lacked behind in the major element of trade; trust.
And the same element, in case of India, has triggered an accelerated trade of vaccines to foreign countries. Besides, neither are the Chinese vaccines capable of providing any satisfactory results. Instead, the results are adding to the lack of trust in the Chinese vaccine. A Chinese doctor had claimed as early as in Jan 2021, that 'Sinopharm' is the most unsafe vaccine to fight COVID 19. And quite typical of China, that soon after Dr Tao Lina's post went viral, he also to the country about the imprudent remarks that he made.
The case of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan getting his first dose of the Chinese Corona vaccine and being diagnosed with the virus just few days after getting vaccinated is an excellent example of what has went wrong with the Chinese vaccine. Further what speaks more effectively about the failure of the Chinese vaccine is the changes in China's policies, whereby the Chinese authoritarian govt has literally forced the Chinese citizens to get the jabs of vaccine. Besides for the people who are not the citizens of the Republic of China and are living in other countries, China is openly luring them with better tourism plans and perks while on a tour to China. However, China is not the only one whose foreign policies have crumbled the country's vaccine diplomacy.
The mess in Europe and eventually in the rest of the world
The world is currently witnessing drastic geo-political changes, not just because of China's aggressive foreign policies but also because of the mess that has happened in the world after Brexit. With Britain's exit from the European Union, there was a gradual change in the European geo politics and eventually even the world. The trade of vaccines has especially been influenced with this changing geo-political stance. Quite recently, the world witnessed how one after the other several European nations stopped the vaccination drives of AstraZeneca claiming that the pharmaceutical is causing blood clotting issues in individuals after the jabs. As govts took strong stands to stop the vaccination drives, it further created fear around the globe regarding the vaccine. However, this again is being solved by the friendships that UK has nurtured over the years or where there are chances to develop new bonds.
The Common Wealth nations after this, started promoting the vaccine and being vocal of the success of the vaccine. On the same lines, recently, Australia bought around 8,000 COVID 19 vaccine doses and sent them to Papua New Guinea. Australia happened to provide this assistance to Guinea during the same time as the world was doubtful of the AstraZeneca's effect to deal with the virus. The act obviously gave a boost to the losing trust in the vaccine around the world. Besides, the Australian govt continued to make official statements in support of the vaccines and promoting vaccination drives without any fear.
The confidence building about the vaccine was then further encouraged by a US based research that scientifically studied and proved that AstraZeneca, which is banned in some European nations whereas some have stopped its jab for the age group beyond 55 due to health concerns, is 79 per cent effective in preventing symptomatic disease. It resulted in a vote of confidence for the shot and opened the gates for its authorization in the US. With the US and Australia now finally backing the vaccine and assuring its safety and effectiveness, Britain's vaccine trade will finally get on the right track, after it got derailed due to lack of trust and support from the European nation, some times totally whereas some times partially.
India, at the same, is not only successfully delivering vaccines to foreign countries through Vaccine Maitri but also specifically providing aid to the nations that are not in good terms with China or are being debt trapped by China and also particularly the small and island nations around the Indo-pacific nation. India's foreign policy, thus, presently is largely being driven through India's vaccine diplomacy, representing successful and strong bonds that we share with the worldly nations.