Predictions
- Biden’s support for COVID-19 vaccine IP waiver will not trigger swift global agreement given need for consensus at World Trade Organization
- Opposition by key countries including Germany will lead to prolonged negotiations over coming months
- Even if approved, lack of manufacturing facilities and wider expertise means waiver alone will not help boost global supply, at least for a year
Event
President Biden announced on 5 May that he would reverse US policy and was now in favour of an initiative to waive intellectual property (IP) rights relating to coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines via the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Trade-Related Aspects of International Property Rights (TRIPS) Council.
Falanx Assynt is a global intelligence consultancy and leading provider of geopolitical, strategic and business risk analysis since 2003. Falanx Assynt is part of Falanx Group Ltd (LON:FLX) which, through its subsidiaries, provides cyber defence and intelligence services to blue chip and government clients worldwide.