Live updates: Blinken says vaccine disparity must be tackled

RIGA, Latvia — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the new omicron variant of the coronavirus, which was discovered in South Africa, underscores the point that "none of us will be fully safe until everyone is.”

Speaking in Riga, Latvia, during a two-day meeting of the NATO foreign ministers, Blinken also noted “a real disparity” between vaccinations in Africa and the United States and Europe.

“We have vaccination rates in the United States, in Europe of 50, 60, 70%, depending on exactly who you’re counting. And in Africa, it’s more like 14, 15% or less.”

He noted that sometimes the supply of vaccines may actually be sufficient to meet the needs, but the ability to get shots in arms is lacking.

He said the United States was working on a solution that “brings the private sector into the game to help solve these last-mile problems of getting shots and arms. We’re putting that into into motion now.”

___

MORE ON THE PANDEMIC:

— The EU’s medical agency says it will take two weeks to have an indication whether the current COVID-19 vaccines will be able to deal with the new variant

— See all of AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic

___

SINGAPORE — Singapore will tighten border restrictions as it seeks to guard against the new omicron coronavirus variant that has spread to at least 16 countries and sparked global concern.

Authorities announced Tuesday that Singapore will freeze the addition of new vaccinated travel lanes which already are in use to allow travelers from countries like the U.S. and Malaysia to enter Singapore without quarantine. Authorities said Tuesday they were suspending plans to include other countries in the...