Brussels has attempted to quell the backlash against its rushed moves to curb vaccine exports, after drawing international criticism and causing uproar for threatening the Irish border arrangements between the UK and the EU.
Canada and Japan both raised concerns over new EU export rules, introduced on Friday, requiring manufacturers to obtain permission before shipping Covid-19 jabs outside the bloc. South Korea also warned governments against a grab for more vaccines than they need.
The complaints came soon after the UK sought assurances from the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen that shipments of BioNTech/Pfizer vaccines from Belgium across the Channel would not be cut off as a result of the new powers.