U.S. seeks to narrow IP waiver scope as WTO members agree to text talks

World Trade Organization members agreed this week to move ahead with text-based talks on proposals aimed at improving the international pandemic response – both a waiver of some intellectual property obligations and an alternative from the European Union – with the U.S. calling for the final product to focus directly on access to vaccines. The move to text-based talks comes after a push from Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala for members to do so and, perhaps more importantly, after the Biden administration...