Macedonian Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce said that the problem with the delivery of the Pfizer vaccines promised by Serbia is in the Pfizer company. The company was not willing to have the vaccine resold after purchase, Filipce said. Filipce insisted that the vaccines are imported to Macedonia through a local company acting as an intermediary – a practice Pfizer rejected, and which is now proving a problem even for the Serbian donation of 8,000 vaccines.

They insist on trustworthy and direct agreements with the recipient country and they want to avoid the usual procedures through local traders. It is a very strictly monitored and controlled process, Filipce said.

The Serbian donation was expected to arrive on Thursday, but on Wednesday evening the delivery was canceled, citing “technical issues”. Minister Filipce has extensive ties to the medical trading companies in Macedonia and has insisted that under our law, there must be a local company that trades with Pfizer. In the meantime, Macedonia remains among the last countries in Europe that haven’t administered any vaccines to its vulnerable categories.