Prognosis
Operation Warp Speed and U.K. Vaccine Drive Leave EU Behind
- Gap seen widening amid rising infections and repeat lockdowns
- International tensions may flare from tiered vaccine access
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With Covid-19 vaccines coming soon, the countries likely to pull ahead in protecting their populations aren’t a big surprise. Britain has become the first Western country to clear a shot, and after plowing as much as $18 billion into Operation Warp Speed, the U.S. is in a prime position.
But the European Union is forecast to trail its peers in immunizing tens of millions of people as vaccines from Pfizer Inc., Moderna Inc. and AstraZeneca Plc near the finish line. That could leave the bloc vulnerable to the pandemic and buoy U.K. efforts to demonstrate the country is better off on its own following Brexit.