Von der Leyen: EU will donate 200 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to low-income countries

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen gave her annual State of the European Union address to the European Parliament on Wednesday, where she said the coming year would be “another test of character for the EU.” Her speech addressed the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, steps the EU took to slow the spread of the virus and the bloc’s future plans for vaccinations. “In the biggest global health crisis we chose to go it together,” von der Leyen said, adding that 70% of Europe’s adult population was fully vaccinated. Von der Leyen said Europe was the only region to share its vaccine stock with other countries and pledged an additional 200 million doses to low-income countries.