The United States will invite Thai authorities to discuss a plan to deliver another one million Pfizer vaccine doses donated by the US government next week.
Manasvi Srisodapol, the Thai ambassador to the United States, said the Thai embassy in the US has been informed by US authorities that they will call a meeting of the Thai-US working group next week to discuss how to proceed with the US donation of an additional million vaccine doses to Thailand.
Previously, the group met to discuss the delivery of the first batch of 1.5 million doses donated by the US, Mr Manasvi said.
Mr Manasvi also said he had phoned Thai-born US senator Tammy Duckworth to ask her about the progress in the US donation of the additional 1 million vaccine doses.
Ms Duckworth told him there is some paperwork which has not yet been completed in Thailand, and asked someone to look into the matter, Mr Manasavi said.
Nicole Fox, spokeswoman of the US embassy in Thailand, said the United States, pharmaceutical companies, and host nations must work through logistics, such as all the required legal and regulatory agreements for vaccine deliveries.
Medical agencies must also play a role in coordinating to ensure safety and that regulatory information is shared. "For the coming donation, we are in touch with the company in question regarding the status of their own legal agreements with Thailand and regulatory approval.
"Next week, we hope to have a bilateral call to work through the legal, logistical, and regulatory items needed to move the doses," Ms Fox said.
"These items will be analogous to those needed for the prior donation of 1.5 million doses.
"We look forward to welcoming the second shipment of vaccines to Thailand as soon as possible."
