The European Commission has announced that it has secured four million more COVID-19 vaccine doses than it had expected to be delivered over the next two weeks.
The vaccines will help E.U. “tackle coronavirus hotspots,” “facilitate free border movement” and fight COVID-19 variants.
The E.U. has been involved in a recent vaccine-related tussle with the U.K., with European Council President Charles Michel accusing the U.K. of blocking vaccine exports to the Continent. U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has refuted that claim.
The U.K. has outpaced the E.U. in vaccine administration, having administered vaccines to more than a third of its population while the E.U. has done so for 9.5%.
Several regions in Europe have seen infection rates and hospitalizations tick up recently, including Tyrol in Austria, Nice and Moselle in France, Bolzano in Italy and some parts of Bavaria and Saxony in Germany.