China to give priority to Philippine COVID-19 vaccine needs, says Chinese exec

China has vowed to give priority to the Philippines' request for COVID-19 vaccine following talks between President Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

“The Philippines is a friendly close neighbor and we will give priority to its needs once we succeed in developing a vaccine,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin at a press briefing in Beijing on July 28.

In his state of the nation address last Monday, Duterte said he had a telephone conversation with Xi and sought the Chinese leader's assurance to give the Philippines priority access to the vaccine.

“Since the outbreak of COVID-19, China and the Philippines have been standing together with mutual assistance, turning anti-epidemic cooperation into a new highlight in bilateral relations,” Wang said.

The Philippines has one of the highest infection rates in Southeast Asia with 83,673 cases and 1,947 deaths.

Numbers continue to rise daily, particularly in the capital Manila, overwhelming medical facilities.

‘Major changes’

Earlier, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said Duterte may announce Thursday night major changes in the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, adding that “things will not be the same.”

“As always, I can’t announce it because it is the President who will announce it on Thursday night, if I’m not mistaken. There are still appeals to be made by the local government units so the recommendations are all preliminary and subject to finalization on Thursday,” Roque said in an interview with CNN Philippines when asked for details on the COVID-19 task force's meeting on Tuesday.

“Let’s just say that things will not be the same. There will be major changes in our response to the pandemic…So it is not so much the classification that would matter but the responses, the new invigorated responses that we will have in this COVID-19 pandemic,” he added. — RSJ, GMA News