New Zealand PM: APEC meeting focussed "exclusively" on COVID-19
SYDNEY, July 17 (Reuters) - New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Saturday a meeting of world leaders that the nation chaired had focused "exclusively" on COVID-19, with discussions of how the Asia-Pacific region can navigate out of the crisis.
"Front of mind for leaders is achieving widespread access for vaccines globally and working collaboratively to provide them to everyone as soon as possible," Ardern told reporters in an early morning news conference.
In a statement issued after the virtual meeting of the Asia-Pacific trade group APEC, world leaders said that extensive COVID-19 immunisation is a global public good and accelerating access to vaccines is essential to overcoming the crisis. (Reporting by Swati Pandey and John Mair; Editing by Gareth Jones)
