Brussels faces rebellion over vaccine export restrictions

The European Commission is facing a rebellion by four countries over its plans to tighten restrictions on vaccine exports, highlighting the depth of internal divisions within the bloc that the policy has caused.

The rebel group, which comprises Belgium, Ireland, the Netherlands and Sweden, did not gather enough support to block the measures, which the Commission announced last month. However, the no-votes highlight the concerns held by some member states that export curbs risk causing lasting damage to the EU's reputation as a reliable link in the medical supply chain.

Also read: EU Chief von der Leyen issues Covid vaccine export warning at virtual EU summit

While Berlin endorsed Brussels' plan, the German government submitted a paper clearly outlining its concerns about certain aspects of the curbs. The Financial Times quoted the German paper as stating that negative decisions on exports "should continue to be only a measure of last resort". It also added that the decision by the Commission to end previous exemptions for vaccines headed for the Western Balkans ran the risk of "lasting reputational damage for the EU."

The reinforced export screens, lauded by EC President Ursula von der Leyen, added new conditions that national governments should consider when deciding whether to permit shipments of Covid-19 vaccines to leave the EU. 

The updated rules tell governments to take into account whether a destination country is showing enough "reciprocity" towards the bloc.

Governments had a deadline of Wednesday night to submit their objections to the updated measures, which have been provisionally in force since March 26.

A joint statement by Belgium, the Netherlands and Sweden, submitted with their no-votes against the measures, said that the policy "might inadvertently start a negative spiral of export restrictions that will hamper the necessary stepping up of global production and potentially also the EU’s own production and distribution."

Also read: EMA approves new vaccine production plants

The Dutch and Belgian opposition to the move is especially poignant, given that both countries are major vaccine producers. The two nations host the two EU facilities which produce the raw ingredients for the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab, and Pfizer produces its vaccines at its plant in Puurs, Belgium.

Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin has previously underlined the importance of allowing supply chains to stay open, saying in an interview with RTE in March: "You start putting up barriers, other countries might follow suit in terms of some of those vital raw materials that are required to make the vaccine."

The diplomatic note from Berlin is especially critical of the Commission's decision to end the exemptions which had previously applied to countries in the Western Balkans and members of the European Free Trade Association, meaning that exports are now vetted under the scheme.

Some countries in the Western Balkans, most notably Serbia, have also been using Russia's Sputnik V and China's Sinopharm jabs in a bid to speed up their vaccination programmes. Earlier this week, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić opted to receive the Chinese-made vaccine, in a bid to highlight his country's long-standing close ties with Beijing.

Also read: Serbia's Vučić condemns EU's "ugly" vaccine export curbs

The German note warns that the move by Brussels "risks undermining confidence in the EU among some of our closest partners and neighbours, and therefore comes with significant foreign policy implications and possibly lasting reputational damage for the EU."

It went on to urge the Commission to reevaluate this element of the new export restrictions, and noted that "an increased activity of third countries’ vaccine producers and a further extension of their geopolitical influence could follow," in a thinly-veiled reference to concerns over Russian and Chinese influence, especially in the Balkan states.

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