A “global scramble” for anti-coronavirus medical equipment has broken out, a top Brussels official has warned, after days of angry claims by countries that cargoes have been suddenly diverted to the US.
Janez Lenarcic, the EU’s crisis management commissioner, said it was now “difficult to arrange an orderly procurement” to ensure crucial pandemic gear such as masks and ventilators went to those who needed them most.
His warning comes after a flurry of allegations by buyers in Europe and the Americas that pandemic supply cargoes from China intended for them have instead been sent to the US at the last minute. While Washington has denied any involvement, interviews with officials from other countries and manufacturers in China suggest a chaotic market of bruising bidding battles for scant resources.