NEW DELHI: External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday justified India's decision to supply Covid-19 vaccines to other countries and said that there is a need for ensuring equitable access to it across the world and the country's ability to make vaccines is a result of international cooperation which is not a "one-way street".
In an interactive session at the opening day of the Raisina Dialogue, which is being held virtually, Jaishankar also said that India's '
vaccine maitri' approach was trying to ensure no one gets left behind.
Underlining that in diplomacy today, doing good is being smart, the minister said 'vaccine maitri' reflects the larger outlook of 'Vaisudhaiva Kutumbakam' (world is one family), asserting that health security is now integral to national security.
"I think equitable access (to vaccines) is critically important in this. Because we all know that no one will be safe till everyone is safe," Jaishankar said when asked to comment on the global approach in dealing with the crisis.
The minister said India has given vaccines to over 80 countries, that would otherwise not have had access to them.
"For small countries, it is not just the ability to buy, but also the wherewithal to access markets. The big debates around globalisation are 'equity' and 'fairness'", he added
Many states like
Maharashtra, Odisha, Jharkhand,
Chhattisgarh and Punjab had flagged a shortage of vaccines and are asking for the removal of age restrictions on taking Covid-19 vaccine and for modification of guidelines for vaccination.
India, which is producing Covaxin and Covishield, has also authorized the use of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine against coronavirus.
Jaishankar also touched upon India's handling of the pandemic, its strength in the medical sector and the way it extended help to various countries including in African continent to help them deal with the pandemic.
"In our case, our vaccine producers had some contractual commitments; they have commitments to COVAX," he added. COVAX, officially known as the Covid-19 Vaccines Global Access Facility, is a global collaboration for speeding up the development, manufacture and equitable distribution of new vaccines.
Talking about the challenges being faced by smaller countries to deal with the pandemic, he said they do not have the wherewithal to access the market and that countries like India can play a crucial role.
"I think part of India's rise would be really to demonstrate our capabilities and I think the world will be better served by these additional capabilities. Capabilities which are in the hands of the country which embraces the world, which believes in international cooperation," he said, referring to vaccine production.
He said health security is emerging as a priority area for cooperation and India can play an important role in it.
"I think in a way today, India is the laboratory... It is certainly an additional capability. We hope in many cases it is a good partner. I think it is also important we tell our own story effectively so that people really understand what is going on," he said.
(With agency inputs)