On a scale of the number of COVID-19 vaccination doses administered per 100 people within a given population, Israel came in first.
By Aryeh Savir, TPS
Leaders from around the world continued to contact Israel to congratulate it on its successful campaign to vaccinate its population against COVID-19 and to seek advice on combatting the virus.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on Monday with Colombian President Ivan Duque and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who congratulated him on the successful vaccination campaign in Israel.
Netanyahu and Duque discussed “advancing bilateral cooperation in the fight against the Coronavirus,” the Prime Minister’s Office stated.
Duque said that he expects to visit Israel, when it becomes possible, to open his country’s technology office in Jerusalem and bring about the implementation of the free trade agreement that has been signed between the two countries.
Duque commended the successful vaccines campaign in Israel and said that it was a lesson for the entire world.
Netanyahu also spoke with Holland’s Rutte regarding “possible cooperation in the research, development and production of vaccines and drugs in the framework of the fight against the coronavirus.”
The leaders also discussed “regional issues, especially the Iranian nuclear threat.”
Rutte stated that both “emphasized the strong political and economic ties between our countries.” He also stressed that the Netherlands’ position on a two-state solution “has not changed.”
They further discussed “cooperation on tackling the Coronavirus and the recent historic peace treaties with several Arab states.”
“We are concerned at the Iranian nuclear programme and Iran’s destabilising role in the region,” he said.
Leaders from Brazil, Denmark, and Austria also called Israel to congratulate it on its success with the COVID-19 vaccines.
Over 3,988,700 Israelis have received the first dose of the Pfizer-developed COVID-19 vaccine, some 43.3% of the population.
Over 2.6 million Israelis – about 28% – have received the second dose.
Over 80% of Israelis aged 60 and older received the second dose, and another 10% received the first dose.
The University of Oxford’s Our World in Data tracker, a global, aggregated database on COVID-19, showed Israel was the fastest country in vaccinating its population.
On a scale of the number of COVID-19 vaccination doses administered per 100 people within a given population, Israel came in first with 1.35, ahead of the United Arab Emirates with 1.07, and Chile with 0.95.