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Indonesia urges more vaccine cooperation at UNGA

Dian Septiari (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Thu, September 23, 2021

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Indonesia urges more vaccine cooperation at UNGA

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s the world recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic at an unequal pace, Indonesia has called for greater vaccine cooperation among partner countries while also addressing various security issues on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

Diplomats from around the world returned to New York in the United States for an in-person meeting this week, after more than a year of virtual diplomacy during the pandemic. This year, the UN General Assembly is being conducted in a hybrid manner, with dozens of world leaders choosing to attend virtually.

A pre-recorded speech from President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo is scheduled to be delivered in the UN General Assembly on Wednesday afternoon New York time, or after midnight in Jakarta. While over 100 heads of state and heads of government will attend the event in person, all ASEAN nations -- except Vietnam, which is currently seated on the UN Security Council – have opted to send pre-recorded statements.

Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said she would meet dozens of her counterparts this week to discuss various issues including how to close the vaccine gap between developed and developing countries, increase cooperation on economic recovery and address several issues such as Myanmar and Afghanistan.

“I continue to encourage [vaccine equity] because I have an additional responsibility: being one of the cochairs of the COVAX Advance Market Commitment [AMC] Engagement Group [a multilateral initiative that aims to secure doses of COVID-19 vaccines for low- and middle-income countries]," she said in a press release.

"So, I will continue to raise the issue of vaccine equality for all countries."

Indonesia reiterates supply concerns at COVAX as new COVID-19 waves hit

Read also: Indonesia reiterates supply concerns at COVAX as new COVID-19 waves hit

During the opening of the UN General Assembly sessions on Tuesday, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reprimanded the world for the inequitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.

He said images of expired and unused vaccines going to waste from some parts of the world told "the tale of our times.” The majority of the wealthier world has been immunized while more than 90 percent of Africa has not even received one dose, he said.

“This is a moral indictment of the state of our world. It is an obscenity. We passed the science test. But we are getting an F in ethics,” he said.

On the sidelines of the UN meetings, Retno met with United Kingdom Foreign Secretary Liz Truss on Monday to discuss pandemic cooperation including the UK’s vaccine support for Indonesia.

Retno also told the new secretary about Indonesia's improving COVID-19 situation following the second wave in July, made worse by the highly transmissible Delta variant.

"My hope is that with the data that I conveyed, the British authorities can use it as input for conducting a review of their red and green lists [of foreign arrivals to the UK],” she said.

Red and green lists regulate the countries from which travelers can enter the UK. Only British or Irish nationals or those who have residency rights in the UK can enter the UK from countries on the red list. Indonesia is currently still on the red list.

On Tuesday, Retno met with her Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, where they also discussed the COVID-19 situation in their respective countries.

“We have the same concerns about the discrimination and politicization of vaccines that still occur today,” Retno said.

Read also: Indonesia scales up vaccine deals, rollout amid devastating 'second wave

In a meeting with Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan, Retno expressed her hope that with the improvement in COVID-19 in Indonesia, Saudi authorities could review their policies relating to vaccine requirements for umrah (minor haj) pilgrims from Indonesia.

Saudi Arabia announced last month that it had resumed allowing travelers from abroad to make the pilgrimage to Mecca, provided that they are vaccinated with Pfizer/BioNTech, Oxford-AstraZeneca, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccines.

But most vaccinated Indonesians have the Sinovac vaccine, which is approved by the World Health Organization for emergency use.

“I again emphasized the importance of the WHO’s Emergency Use Listing [EUL] procedure as a reference in policy making regarding vaccines,” she said.

Retno also met with her counterparts from Jordan and Slovenia, as well as speaking with Abdullah Abdullah from Afghanistan -- a former chief executive officer of Afghanistan who led the High Council for National Reconciliation -- via phone.

Meanwhile, at an Asia Society event, Retno addressed various regional issues in Southeast Asia, such as the political, humanitarian and economic crisis in Myanmar, as well as in the wider Indo-Pacific region.

On Australia’s recent decision to procure nuclear-powered submarines under a security cooperation agreement with the US and UK, Retno said Indonesia had listened to assurances from Canberra that it would remain committed to various non-proliferation principles and international law.

“I emphasized that what none of us want is the possibility of an increasing arms race and power projection in the region, which of course can threaten regional security stability,” she said.

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