Russian FM urges unity in fight against COVID-19, calls against politicization

Attempts have been made to "politicize" the COVID-19 situation, and global cooperation is needed to fight the pandemic, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday during a press conference following the meeting of the BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs held via video link.

"If someone has additional questions, they need to be discussed with all countries within the framework of the World Health Organization (WHO)," he said, answering a question on possible speculations about the origins of the coronavirus.

"Attempts have surely been made to politicize the current situation," he added.

Lavrov said that all BRICS countries fully support the role of the WHO, which in cooperation with China formed a group of experts that visited Wuhan and presented their assessments that have been made publicly available.

"Politicians shouldn't strive to score points and increase their popularity by speculating about the COVID-19 situation or the situation with different vaccines that have been authorized by the WHO," he said.

According to the minister, there is an urgent need to unite efforts in the fight against this global challenge.

It is essential to coordinate action to achieve proper distribution of the vaccines, their registration, to agree on documentation for those that have already been vaccinated among other issues, Lavrov said.

While the European Union has the right to create its own rules, it "should not discriminate against other members of the international community" outside the bloc, he added.

"We support openness and the necessity to take into account the interests of all countries, not only the so-called rich ones, but also those that do not have the means to develop or purchase a vaccine," Lavrov said.

TV BRICS reports with reference to Xinhua News Agency.

Photo:  kremlin.ru