French expert criticizes EU vaccination policy

Only a small number of citizens of European countries are vaccinated against COVID, and that’s because of irresponsible decisions of the EU, Deputy Director of the Institute of Urban Planning and Development of the Paris-Sorbonne University, Professor Jean-Antoine Duprat said, the French bureau of Report informs.

Duprat was commenting on the situation with the coronavirus vaccination in Europe.

He said that at the EU level, attempts are being made to avoid responsibility when making decisions about vaccines: “While half of the population is vaccinated in the UK, only 10 percent are vaccinated in France. Serious shortcomings were admitted in the vaccination issue at the EU level. The US and UK, unlike the EU countries, began negotiations with laboratories for vaccine production. These countries were able to quickly establish cooperation between the public and private sectors for the production of vaccines.”

Jean-Antoine Duprat said that delays in vaccinating European citizens are directly related to administrative red tape at the Union level.

“The EU seemed to be trying to drop the price, like when buying and selling goods,” he noted. “The goal was to quickly ensure vaccination of the biggest number of people. Unlike the EU, Israel at that time signed an agreement on direct cooperation with laboratories to obtain all vaccines. It even agreed to pay a large sum for this. However, in Europe this was hampered by the red tape and the slow procedure for obtaining permits, and this is one of the main factors, which has led to the current difficult situation.”

Among the countries of the EU, Malta has the most vaccinated population, followed by Hungary.