CHINA DAILY | HONG KONG EDITION Tuesday, June 22, 2021 | 3 TOP NEWS Sinopharm subsidiary: Full Command center US urged clinical trial data submitted not to use By Wang Xiaoyu efficacy rate is the most crucial [email protected] determinant of whether herd immunity can be built, he added. vaccine aid Zhang Yuntao, vice-president of When using the efficacy rate as China National Biotech Group, a the sole barometer, CNBG’s vaccines subsidiary of Sinopharm, said the appear to be at a disadvantage com- as leverage company has submitted complete pared with mRNA vaccines made by and detailed clinical trial data on its Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna in By ZHOU JIN COVID-19 vaccines to the World developed countries, which both [email protected] Health Organization and other have reported efficacy rates higher countries, which reviewed its vacci- than 90 percent, he said. China urged the United States on nes for emergency use. “I think the difference in the effi- Monday not to use vaccine assist- The company has never withheld cacy rate stems from the different ance as a form of political leverage underlying data on clinical trials on technologies that are used in devel- to interfere in China’s domestic two COVID-19 vaccines developed by oping these vaccines,” he said. affairs after the US delivered 2.5 mil- two institutions under CNBG, he said. CNBG’s vaccines are made through lion COVID-19 doses to Taiwan. “On Dec 28, we submitted a full the more established method of Foreign Ministry spokesman set of data on the inactivated vaccine using an inactivated virus to trigger Zhao Lijian said at a news confer- from the Beijing Institute of Biologi- immune responses. ence that China always supports cal Products to the National Medical “But all vaccines have strengths anti-pandemic cooperation and has Products Administration. On Dec and weaknesses. Assessing a vac- made positive efforts to ensure it 30, the administration and our offi- cine product should take the likeli- happens. cial website both published the key hood of adverse reactions and its Despite the goodwill of the main- information on the vaccine’s efficacy accessibility to the general public Foreign dignitaries visit Beijing’s rail transit command center on Monday, as part of activities held land and Taiwan compatriots’ rate, which is 79.34 percent,” he said. into consideration as well,” he said. by the Ministry of Transport and the Foreign Ministry for more than 100 ambassadors and repre- urgent need for vaccines, the Demo- The Beijing Institute vaccine was On April 21, CNBG released safety sentatives of international organizations in China to boost understanding and exchanges on the cratic Progressive Party has the first to receive conditional data on large-scale emergency use of reform and development of transportation. FENG YONGBIN / CHINA DAILY obstructed the shipment of main- approval from China’s top drug reg- its COVID-19 vaccines delivered to land-produced vaccines to the ulator. In May, the WHO approved nearly 520,000 Chinese. Results have island and even lied that the main- the vaccine for emergency use. shown that the rate of adverse reac- land had blocked its procurement of Before both CNBG vaccines were tions following inoculation is lower vaccines, Zhao said. administered to people overseas, than that of other common inactivat- Out of its self-interest, the DPP Zhang said national drug regulators ed vaccines, such as those preventing constantly pursues political manip- had access to “full data and materi- hepatitis A and influenza. Law to boost Hainan ulation of anti-pandemic coopera- al” on clinical trials before they were Another trademark of CNBG’s tion, turning a blind eye to the granted approval. vaccines is that they can be stored health of Taiwan people and run- On May 26, a study published in and transported at temperatures of 2 ning counter to the humanitarian The Journal of the American Medi- to 8 C, rather the very cold tempera- spirit, he said. cal Association, a global peer-re- tures required for mRNA vaccines. business environment Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman for viewed publication, showed that The company is also keeping a the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State both vaccines had an efficacy rate of close eye on how long immunity lasts, Council, said on Monday that the more than 70 percent. the role of booster shots and threats Governor: Greater efforts will be made in innovation, there will be increas- mainland has repeatedly expressed Zhang added that the company from variants circulating overseas. ing pressure on controlling its willingness to make the utmost held itself to high standards during Zhang said clinical trials designed registration, identifying risks, monitoring financial risks. efforts to help Taiwan people over- human trials and analysis of results, to address these concerns were He said that a special group for come the pandemic and provide focusing on core data that revealed already underway, such as injecting By ZHANG YUE and ative list for foreign investors guarding against financial risks vaccines to them. both vaccines’ effectiveness in pre- a third shot to boost immune OUYANG SHIJIA will bring greater investment has been set up by the provincial However, the DPP continues to venting people from getting symp- response that can last longer or can opportunities. The port will fully government. Strong measures play a political game of creating tomatic COVID-19 diseases. The fend off new coronavirus strains. A range of measures are being open its market to investors, will be taken against illegal fun- cross-Straits confrontation and Tai- taken to better implement the except for areas that may relate draising and forestalling regional wan people still cannot receive Hainan Free Trade Port Law and to national security, social stabil- and systemic financial risks. enough safe and efficient vaccines foster a sounder business envi- ity, key aspects of environmental The provincial government has from the mainland. Precious time to Producer: Firm plans to scale ronment in an effort to develop a protection and key national also made arrangements to guard combat the pandemic has been globally influential free trade port interests, while foreign investors against risks in the real estate sec- wasted, Ma said. in Hainan province, officials and will be eligible to enjoy the same tor, Feng said. Meanwhile, Zhao expressed up capacity to meet demand experts said. treatment as their domestic On June 10, China passed a law strong dissatisfaction and opposi- Steps will be taken in invest- counterparts. on the Hainan Free Trade Port, tion to the “blackmails and threats” ment liberalization and facilita- Meanwhile, greater efforts will making institutional arrange- from Washington after a US official From page 1 first time that this type of license, tion when putting the law into be made to reduce risks, Feng ments for the construction of the said China will risk international which acknowledges a producer’s force, and a simpler investment said, adding that there will be zero Hainan FTP at the national legis- isolation if it refuses a “real” investi- While these longtime partners are compliance with quality standards, approval mechanism will be fully tolerance of any act that takes lative level. gation in its territory into the ori- among dozens of countries that have was granted by a European Union rolled out, Wang Chaoying, a advantage of the Hainan Free Cui Weijie, deputy director of gins of the coronavirus. granted some form of regulatory member state to a Chinese vaccine member of the Standing Commit- Trade Port as a “tax haven”. the Chinese Academy of Inter- The recent remarks by US Nation- approval to Chinese COVID-19 vacci- company, according to CNBG. tee of the National People’s Con- He said that since the overall national Trade and Economic al Security Adviser Jake Sullivan fol- nes, new frontiers in Asia, South “The certification from the EU reg- gress, said at a news conference plan for the construction of the Cooperation, said the Hainan low last week’s call by G7 leaders, America and Eastern Europe repre- ulatory authorities is one of the hard- on Monday. free trade port and competent Free Trade Port Law has shown including US President Joe Biden, sented breakthroughs on expanding est to earn in the world due to their Feng Fei, governor of Hainan policy support was announced the country’s firm determina- for another probe into how the virus the company’s reach, Zhang said. stringent appraisals,” Zhang said. province, said that the Hainan last year, the number of market tion to build a free trade port in originated. “The company’s scientific With the new certificate in hand Free Trade Port Law will help to players entering Hainan has Hainan with the highest level of “Accusing China of ‘saying no’ to research has always been a global and an emergency use approval giv- bolster the confidence of busi- surged. openness, making institutional investigating the origin of the virus is endeavor and the total output has en to the vaccine by Hungarian nesses, and foreign investors in “We will make solid prepara- efforts for building a high-quali- totally groundless, and it is even more been massive. But the scope of our authorities in late January, CNBG is particular, to have longer-term tions to guard against tax risks ty FTP at the national legislative alarmist to say that China will face sales and distribution in the past has one step closer to tapping into the plans for their investments in and never allow any act that may level. international isolation,” Zhao said. been relatively limited,” he said. European market, he said. The com- Hainan. use the port as a ‘tax haven’,” he “It is conducive to not only As a scientific issue, the origin of As its COVID-19 vaccines are forg- pany will proceed with follow-up He said that what businesses said. Specifically, efforts will be forming a system of governance the virus should not be politicized, ing paths in previously uncharted procedures, such as applying for and investors care about most is made in business registration, with clearly defined duties and he said. Zhao noted that the US has territories, including Serbia, Kyrgyz- registration, in order to land their policy stability and consistency, identifying risks and regular obligations and administration in been relying on intelligence agen- stan and Argentina, Zhang said the products in the European market. and the new law will help anchor oversight. line with the law, but also further cies, instead of scientists, to conduct company’s global presence and Underpinning the progress of the market expectations and foster a Financial risks will be strictly stimulating the vitality of market assessments. influence have escalated. company are decades of technologi- world-class, market-oriented busi- forestalled and defused, Feng players,” Cui added. Washington’s position on the issue cal advances, the commitment of ness climate governed by a sound said. As the port seeks to attract is the opposite to the majority of Global approvals researchers and employees and legal framework. and leverage more global capital Contact the writers at countries, and the US is placing itself On May 7, the CNBG achieved a strong support from the government. Feng said the port’s short neg- and grow in terms of financial [email protected] in international isolation, he added. milestone when the WHO Zhang represented CNBG twice announced it had granted “emer- during online sessions convened by gency use listing” to a COVID-19 vac- the WHO to appraise the safety and cine made by the company’s Beijing efficacy of its vaccine. About 250 Institute of Biological Products, pav- global experts raised questions Space programs motivate HK’s aspiring scientists ing the way for accelerating access during the sessions. to doses in less-developed countries. “It took one CNBG unit in Sichuan By CHEN ZIMO in Hong Kong Department of Land Surveying The approval streamlines procure- province eight years to obtain an EUL [email protected] and Geo-Informatics, said he ment of vaccines by global organiza- for the treatment of the Japanese hoped that the good prospects will tions. The vaccine from the Beijing- encephalitis virus. This time, we aimed Passion and pride have bubbled boost the confidence of Hong based institute was the sixth COVID- to achieve the same goal in a short up among aspiring scientists in Kong’s young people in pursuing 19 vaccine, and the first Chinese- period. The workload had surged at an Hong Kong, as more researchers scientific careers. Wu, leading a made one, to receive WHO approval. astronomical rate,” he said. in the special administrative team of young scientists, had “Achieving EUL means that our “The science and logic behind our region are deeply participating in joined the nation’s deep-space products qualify to be purchased by a products are in alignment with China’s major space exploration exploration efforts, including par- number of international organiza- global standards. That’s why we are projects. ticipation in the Tianwen 1 space- tions, such as the COVAX program, winning increasing recognition This year, China celebrated a craft mission that successfully the Gavi Alliance (the Global Alliance from the international community.” series of milestones in space explo- landed a rover on Mars in May. for Vaccines and Immunization) and In order to meet the expected ration, from landing a rover on Wu, a veteran contributor to United Nations agencies like increase in global demand for Chinese Mars to beginning to build its own national space missions, said he UNICEF,” Zhang said, adding that vaccines, Zhang said, CNBG is prepar- space station. Many of these pro- has met many aspiring undergrad- the WHO approval opens up much ing to scale up its production capacity. jects have received contributions uates who were drawn by his expe- wider distribution. The company is aiming to boost from Hong Kong-based scientists, rience with space missions and On June 1, the first batch of its its annual output to 3 billion doses known for their world-class sought his help with their gradua- vaccines to be supplied to COVAX, a by the end of this year. research strengths. Wu Bo (left) and Yung Kai-leung, both from Hong Kong Polytech- tion projects in related field. WHO-led initiative for equitable Besides CNBG’s institutes in Beijing Wong Kam-fai, a professor at nic University, pose for a photo during a media briefing at the uni- He said he hoped that cross-bor- global access to coronavirus vacci- and Wuhan, Hubei province, which Chinese University of Hong Kong versity on May 21. Wu helped identify possible landing regions on der scientific collaboration and nes, rolled off the production line, each developed a COVID-19 vaccine, known for his contributions to Mars with advanced mapping technologies. Yung developed a new links to national projects according to the company. four other institutes administered by information technology, described space instrument to capture images of the surroundings on the could open up more career options “We got positive feedback from an the company have been mobilized to the opportunities offered by Red Planet. LI ZHIHUA / CHINA NEWS SERVICE for the city’s young people. He said on-site inspection conducted in Jan- produce and package vaccines. national projects as “a diamond that so far, few have stayed on this uary, the materials we submitted Zhang said CNBG plans to build a mine” for young people in the track due to intense competition were of high quality and our commu- global packaging and logistics net- Hong Kong SAR who are interest- Now, however, people around such as experimental samples. for positions with local research nication with the WHO’s Strategic work. A joint venture is already under- ed in science careers. the world are seeking to work with With deeper involvement in institutions. Advisory Group of Experts on Immu- way in the United Arab Emirates, Wong, who is associate dean of China’s top teams, he said. national projects and collabora- Wu also said he hoped that nization has been consistent, which which will see raw material provided external affairs for the university’s Wong encouraged young people tion with other cities in the Guang- future students interested in sci- all boosted our confidence,” he said. by CNBG and production completed engineering faculty, recalled the in the region to attempt to better dong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater ence eventually will have more On April 1, another breakthrough in the UAE. efforts he made two or three dec- grasp where opportunities might Bay Area, he believes the problem development directions, such as was made when Hungarian drug “Our goal has always been and will ades ago to win a chance to work in lie in the future. can be eased and research can continuing their scientific regulators issued a certificate of continue to be striking a balance programs initiated by the United Wong said Hong Kong’s scientif- advance further. research, starting a business or Good Manufacturing Practice to between domestic and global sup- States or Europe, which then dom- ic development is hindered by Wu Bo, a professor in Hong participating in major national or CNBG’s Beijing vaccine. It is the plies,” Zhang said. inated cutting-edge technology. such things as a lack of resources, Kong Polytechnic University’s international projects.