If the coronavirus pandemic was a test of unity and sympathy, then the painful result of this test so far has been failure.
As the pandemic rattles the world, governments worldwide find themselves in a fierce competition to obtain scarce medical supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE), especially for doctors and nurses on the frontline fighting against the virus. The ferocious battle among nations has been made worst by what many say is unfair play, intimidation, aggressive methods and trade protectionism.
All of these were manifested in a US decision to stop nearly three million specialised masks from being exported to Canada’s most populous province last week amid mounting fears that Ontario would run out of supplies for medical staff battling the coronavirus.
The move came after US President Donald Trump invoked the 1950 Defence Production Act giving the government “any or all authority” to stop US medical firms such as 3M exporting N95 respirators to Canada and Latin America.
“We need the masks. We don’t want other people getting them,” Trump said to reporters. “That’s why we’re instituting [the] Defence Production Act. You could call it retaliation because that’s what it is: it’s retaliation. If people don’t give us what we need for our people, we’re going to be very tough.”
3M initially resisted the president’s executive order, warning in a statement that the move would have “significant humanitarian implications” for countries desperate for safety equipment.
Earlier this week, officials in Germany, France, Spain, Canada and Brazil accused the US of “modern piracy” after the administration diverted medical supplies meant for other countries by outbidding the original buyers and pressuring US companies to limit their international sales of medical supplies and PPE to give priority to the American market.
Countries like the United Kingdom, which depend on imported medical equipment, see the increasing protectionism as an alarm bell. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Foreign Minister and acting Prime Minister Dominic Raab have warned world leaders against “compounding the harm” of coronavirus with “damaging protectionism”.
In an article for the Telegraph newspaper, Raab stated that international teamwork was essential to tackle the pandemic, saying that he had personally worked to keep trade routes open. The UK’s intervention come after a report by Global Trade Alert, a Swiss independent group, warning that governments around the world had introduced export curbs on medical supplies since the beginning of the year.
According to the report, as of 21 March, 46 export curbs on medical supplies had been introduced by 54 governments since the beginning of January. Thirty four of these have been announced since the beginning of March, an indication of just how quickly new trade limits are spreading across the globe.
The consequences of export curbs on medical ventilators highlight the risks to developing countries during the pandemic. The 25 nations that export significant numbers of medical ventilators include just one nation in Latin America (Mexico) and no nations in Africa, the Middle East, South Asia and the Commonwealth of Independent States region.
Given the sophisticated technology used in cutting-edge ventilators, it is unlikely that there are local producers in these countries capable of meeting global standards. Therefore, billions of people in developing countries are dependent on international trade for access to this critical technology used to help patients suffering from advanced stages of Covid-19.
The Global Trade Alert report said that an analysis of export patterns of medical supplies had revealed that concerns about dependence in a very small number of foreign exporters applied to three types of protective garment. Scare stories that China, India or any other country have a stranglehold over the global trade in medical supplies are at odds with the facts, it said.
It added that some import barriers in place even before the pandemic on medical equipment, disinfectant, and soap raised questions about the coherence of many nations’ trade policies.
INTIMIDATION: The problem appeared when officials in Berlin alleged that the US had intercepted a shipment of medical equipment in Thailand from American medical supply company 3M and diverted it to the US.
3M is one of the few US-based manufacturers of critical N95 masks.
Andreas Geisel, Berlin’s interior minister, called the alleged interception “modern piracy.” “We are currently assuming that this is related to the US government’s ban on mask exports,” Geisel said in a statement. “This is not how you deal with transatlantic partners. Even in times of global crisis, wild west methods shouldn’t rule.”
French officials also accused the US of redirecting a shipment of medical masks from Shanghai originally intended for a hard-hit French region by offering a much higher price for the supplies.
The accusations come as demand in the US for facemasks surges, particularly after a new Centres for Disease Control and Prevention recommendation that all Americans should wear face coverings in public.
The US has denied accusations of diverting supplies from other countries, even as Trump has tried to force American companies into prioritising US orders by invoking the Defence Production Act that allows the federal government to dictate the production and delivery schedules of private companies in order to prevent the export of protective medical gear overseas.
He used the Act to order 3M to stop exporting hospital-grade N95 masks to Canada and Latin America, according to the company. 3M warned of “significant humanitarian implications” of ending shipments to Canada and Latin America. 3M CEO Mike Roman said that “the idea that 3M is not doing all it can to fight price gouging and unauthorised retailing is absurd. The narrative that we are not doing everything we can to maximise deliveries of respirators in our home country – nothing could be further from the truth.”
Canadian Prime Pinister Justin Trudeau warned against halting American medical exports to Canada. “We are not looking at retaliatory measures or measures that are punitive,” he said, while warning that there may be unintended negative consequences. “We know it is in both of our interests to work collaboratively and cooperatively to keep our citizens safe.”
As countries across the globe face a shortage of medical supplies needed to combat the spread of Covid-19 and with no collective effort to distribute supplies to countries that need them most, little stands in the way of global feuding and price-gouging.
Germany has imposed an export ban on protective clothing, particularly masks, as it fights coronavirus within its borders. France was accused of commandeering orders of medical equipment ordered by buyers in neighbouring countries.
The Trump administration has not enacted export controls to keep products in the US. However, Peter Navarro, a White House trade and manufacturing adviser, hinted at a forthcoming executive order that would see the US customs agency block foreign sales of medical supplies with inflated prices.
Such exchanges underscore the challenges that world leaders are facing in trying to keep their citizens supplied with necessary equipment and comply with international trade deals and longstanding alliances.
But every country needs PPE now, and ramping up production will take time. In the UK, people are talking about the benefits of making things in Britain again, but the UK is dependent on imports for key products, and there is an absence of financing and infrastructure to start producing what Britain needs.
A British nurse working at Kingston Hospital in London said that the lack of face masks, gloves and protective garments put the medical staff’s life in danger and threatened efforts to counter the coronavirus.
“A single nurse needs five or six face masks during her or his shift, and the perception was that we in Britain can provide this easily. But what many doctors and nurses have discovered is that these humble face masks, gloves and protective garments are becoming difficult to purchase on the international market,” she told Al-Ahram Weekly.
“Imagine when doctors and nurses die because certain countries do not want to sell protection kit outside their borders. It leaves me in despair,” she added.
*A version of this article appears in print in the 9 April, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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