The State of Kuwait has called for international cooperation to secure fair distribution of vaccines against the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) to all states.

Nations, pledged continuing and constructive efforts, in coordination with partners, for contributing to the international response to the pandemic.

"We are convinced that no one is safe from this virus and the discussion today is held two years after outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic that has constituted the greatest challenge facing the world since World War II," said ambassador al-Otaibi, addressing a senior-level session held by the UN General Assembly on means of boosting comprehensive immunization against the virus worldwide.

The pandemic has taken some six million lives, infected more than 400 million people throughout the world, inflicted horrific damage and caused massive repercussions in social, economic, health and political sectors. It is still widely spread, claiming many lives and mutating into various clusters such as Delta and Omicron renewing hazards of the virus and adding to pressure on health systems in many states, the Kuwaiti envoy said.

Development of vaccines rapidly renewed hope for stemming its spread in a better manner. However, the mechanism of distributing the vaccines to the states was unjust, widening the gap between advanced and developing countries amid forecast expansion of poverty and longer lasting effects of the pandemic. Ambassador Al-Otaibi called fior coordinated efforts for international response to the pandemic where it might ensure just distribution of the vaccines and pave the way for global immunization. He also urged the international community to shoulder the humanitarian and ethical responsibility and aid the developing nations at this level. At the national level, Kuwait has succeeded in immunizing 85 percent of its population and there has been increasing desire to get the booster jab, he said, also indicating at start of a vaccination campaign for children aged between five and 11. Abroad, Kuwait has made generous financial contributions to agencies tasked with combating the pandemic.

He reaffirmed the necessity of aiding all countries in the fight against the communicable disease and attain the objective set by the World Health Organization; vaccinating 70 percent of the world's people by the middle of 2022. /KUNA