Argentina begins local production of Russia's Sputnik vaccine

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2. And not a moment too soon

This second wave has been brutal in Argentina, as indeed in the rest of South America. It's these two new strains - the Manaus and Andes - that have proven extremely contagious.

And contrary to right-wing press versions, Fernández would have preferred to have Argentina produce the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines.

But Pfizer's conditions were impossible to meet, going as far as to even demand putting up Central Bank reserves and embassies as collateral (!) - as confirmed by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, and later the New York Times (https://democraticunderground.com/114225229).

AstraZeneca looked more promising:

A deal was reached, whereby the active ingredient (virus DNA, etc.) would be made in Argentina and bottled in Mexico - but with some U.S.-made ingredients.

That meant 250 million doses throughout Latin America - of which 22 million were earmarked for Argentina.

But U.S. export restrictions - dating from the Trump era - stopped key ingredients from reaching the Mexican plant.

That left Argentina (and the whole region) dependent on Chinese and Russian sources - though the AstraZeneca doses are finally now becoming available, thanks to Biden's lifting the export caps last month.

The local mass production of Sputnik definitely adds to that - not just for Argentina but for the whole region.

Thank you for taking the time, and sharing your thoughts on this Judi - as always. Have a great Sunday!