China injects vaccine diplomacy into Latin America

Beijing expands influence amid region's limited drugmaking capabilities

20201026N Sinovac vaccine

A worker performs a quality check on Sinovac Biotech's experimental coronavirus vaccine. © Reuters

NAOYUKI TOYAMA, Nikkei staff writer

SAO PAULO -- When Sao Paulo Gov. Joao Doria vowed to make Sinovac Biotech's coronavirus vaccine candidate mandatory across Brazil's most populous state, his bitter adversary President Jair Bolsonaro took to social media to say that such a product must be "scientifically proven" before it is distributed to the public.

"The Brazilian people will not be anyone's guinea pigs," Bolsonaro wrote, noting that the Chinese company's candidate has yet to conclude final clinical trials.

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