Vials of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine (COVID-19) during the first day of mass vaccination of police and firefighters at the Metropolitan Stadium in Wanda.
Marcos del Mazo | LightRocket | Getty Images
LONDON – The European Union made its first intervention in the supply of vaccines against the coronavirus, with Italy blocking the shipment of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine to Australia on Thursday.
Reuters reported, citing two sources, that AstraZeneca had asked Rome for permission to send about 250,000 doses from its factory in Anagni. However, the Italian government refused. The Financial Times also reported the same story. An AstraZeneca spokesman was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC.
In January, the European Union placed temporary controls on the export of vaccines made within the bloc, after a fight with the British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca and broader supply issues. The EU has been under pressure for what critics describe as a slow launch of Covid vaccines.
The European Commission, the institution that leads the purchase agreements, was blamed for not ensuring enough vaccines, and the region’s medical agency was criticized for taking too long to approve inoculations that received the green light elsewhere.
The controls will last until the end of March and empower EU member states to reject export authorization if vaccine manufacturers fail to honor contracts.