US must export vaccine doses before waiving patents, say EU leaders

Frustration expressed at what several leaders see as US attempt to claim moral high ground

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EU leaders have given short shrift to a proposal by Joe Biden and backed by the pope to waive Covid-19 vaccine patents as a way to increase supply, insisting that the White House should instead allow the export of doses and of the key ingredients.

At a summit in Porto, a series of European leaders, including those who had previously appeared open to suspending intellectual property rights, said Biden's idea was not a priority and expressed frustration at the US president's attempt to claim the moral high ground.