Covid-19: Macron reiterates his goal of offering a vaccine to all French people "by the end of the summer"

Emmanuel Macron spoke this Thursday evening on the sidelines of the European Council to discuss in particular the vaccine strategy against Covid-19.

"We are in a speed race between the third wave and vaccination everywhere in Europe", he recalled.

The Head of State reaffirmed his desire to offer all French people who so wish the possibility of being vaccinated "by the end of the summer".

"This requires a significant increase in deliveries," he said.

The President of the Republic indicated that the European production of vaccines would increase "from the next few weeks, in order to produce completely for ourselves, and to be, by the summer, the continent which produces the more vaccines in the world ”.

"We have in Europe various capacities necessary for the cycle of vaccine production, whether it is the factories of design or in charge of the finishing of the doses", he explained.

After praising European cooperation, Emmanuel Macron nevertheless acknowledged that Europe was behind schedule: “Some have gone faster than us, we will have to draw all the consequences.

The United States has been more innovative, more ambitious.

They innovated faster and stronger.

"

"It's the end of naivety"

The head of state has targeted AstraZeneca, which he accuses of not having respected the contract concluded with the member states.

“The contracts between Pfizer and the EU have been honored.

The contractual commitments made with Moderna are honored.

But the commitments with AstraZeneca have not been, and by far, ”he said.

The Swedish-British laboratory has delivered to Europeans only 30 of the 120 million doses promised in the first quarter.

"I hope that the referrals made in Italy make it possible to deliver the Europeans on time," said the Head of State, referring to the 29 million doses discovered in a bottling site in Anagni, in the south. from Rome.

“This is to prevent other developed countries from using themselves at the expense of the European Union.

"

"This is the end of naivety", he added, reaffirming his "full confidence in the export control mechanisms of the European Commission".

At the same time, Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, also warned that it will be necessary "to block all exports as long as laboratories do not keep their commitments with the Europeans".

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Asked about the restrictive measures taken in France, Emmanuel Macron said he was "right not to reconfigure" the country at the end of January, refusing any "mea culpa" despite the outbreak of Covid-19 currently observed.

"There was not the explosion which was foreseen by all the models", pleaded the Head of State.