Vietnam's Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung attends the meeting on February 18, 2021. (Photo: VNA)

The vaccine doses will be distributed equally among the group’s members, as agreed at the sixth meeting of the ASEAN Coordinating Council (ACC) Working Group on Public Health Emergencies (ACCWG-PHE) held virtually on Thursday. Discussions focused on effective control of coronavirus outbreaks, and a path to sustainable, comprehensive recovery.

Addressing the event on behalf of Vietnam, Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung reiterated Vietnam’s support to use the fund to buy vaccines for citizens of ASEAN member states. He called on each country to clearly identify their demands in terms of volume, types of vaccines, as well as which groups will be prioritized to receive vaccinations.

Mr. Dung welcomed the proposal of Brunei, ASEAN Chair of 2021, to use global multilateral mechanisms such as COVAX as a vaccine provider, to help meet South East Asia’s demands. He added that Vietnam is completing the procedures to announce a list of medical equipment that can be contributed to the ASEAN reserve warehouses of medical supplies.

Vietnam has also pledged to closely coordinate with other members, and the ASEAN Secretariat, to implement a path to recovery that will minimize the adverse effects of the pandemic on society.