The pharmaceutical company Pfizer has filed a lawsuit against Poland. The reason was that Poland had not paid for several tens of millions of vaccines it had ordered from Pfizer.
The country ordered 60 million vaccines from the company, for which it subsequently failed to pay. Now Pfizer is demanding compensation in the amount of 6 billion zlotys.
Source. This was reported by ukrayina.pl, citing the Dziennik Gazeta Prawna portal.
In March last year, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki wrote to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen that Poland would not receive the coronavirus vaccine from Pfizer. "He cited force majeure, that is, the war in Ukraine, as the immediate reason," the newspaper writes.
Subsequently, the Polish government announced that it was terminating the contract with the pharmaceutical giant because of the costs the country was incurring due to the war in Ukraine. There were attempts to reach an agreement with Pfizer, but the negotiations failed. Until now, the company had not resorted to court for a long time. The company waited until the news about Ukraine was off the front pages of the newspapers and the government in Poland changed.
The problems arising from the lawsuit will fall on the shoulders of the new government, which is likely to be led by Donald Tusk.
The publication reminds that by the end of 2023, more than 5 billion zlotys were frozen in the so-called Covid Fund, but in 2024 they will no longer be available. They were allocated "for other payments."
According to lawyer Professor Michał Romanowski of the University of Warsaw, Poland will have to clearly prove that Russia's attack on Ukraine was causally related to the inability to fulfill the vaccine contract.
Pfizer stated: "We continue to work with the European Commission and governments to find pragmatic solutions to meet the changing needs of the pandemic."
Polish Health Minister Katarzyna Sojka believes that "there is a chance to complete this process in a good way". In an interview with TVN 24, Sojka said that the lawsuit is relevant and will be considered internationally.
"First of all, we are not alone in this issue, because there are more countries in the European Union that have a similar problem," she said.
Background. As reported, Ukraine will sue the carriers that blocked traffic at the border, and Poland will help it in this.