MELBOURNE — Ministers from Asia-Pacific trade group APEC on Saturday agreed to expedite the transit of COVID-19 vaccines and related goods, but stopped short of agreeing to remove tariffs on them.
Prior to the start of the meeting, host New Zealand wanted APEC’s 21 members to agree on “best practices guidelines” on the movement of vaccines and related medical products across borders, a person familiar with the talks told Reuters.
New Zealand believes an agreement is needed to show that APEC is responsive and relevant to the crisis facing the world.
In a statement after the meeting, APEC ministers said they would “expedite the flow and transit of all COVID-19 vaccines and r…
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