Washington, March 16: As the world fights against the deadly coronavirus outbreak, reports have emerged that the Donald Trump administration in the United States of America attempted to persuade a German firm by offering a hefty amount to access their Coronavirus Vaccine Research. According to a report by The New York Times, the Trump administration persuaded a German firm, which was developing a possible vaccine for coronavirus and asked them to move their research work to the United States. The report added that President Trump was trying to assure that any new vaccine against COVID-19 would be available first and exclusively, in the United States. US President Donald Trump Had Possible Second-Hand Exposure to COVID-19, but Not Tested, Says His Spokesperson Stephanie Grisham.

The NY Times report further informs that the offer made by the US arose from a March 2 meeting at the White House which was attended by President Trump, Chief executive of the German firm CureVac, Daniel Menichella among other leader. On the day of the meeting, Menichella had said that Germany was very confident that it will develop a potent vaccine candidate within a few months. However, a few days ago, CureVac, the German firm , announced that Menichella was leaving the biotechnology company. Donald Trump Bats for Social Distancing Amid Coronavirus Scare! Know What Does this Term Means and Why it is Important During COVID-19 Outbreak.

The report informs that Menichella, originally an American, had headed for two years. The announcement by the firm gave no reason for Menichella’s sudden departure from the research firm. However, the German firm CureVac, issued a statement in Germany on Sunday describing its vaccine work. “CureVac refrains from commenting on current media speculations and clearly rejects claims about the sale of the company or its technology,” it added.

The privately held biotechnology firm has its headquarters in the southwestern city of Tubingen, Germany. CureVac’s main investor ruled out giving exclusive access to a future vaccine to one country, the report added.

The NY Times report further informs that the Trump administration has spoken with more than 25 companies that say they can help with a vaccine. Germany’s interior minister, Horst Seehofer, said that Chancellor Angela  Merkel will lead a crisis meeting with ministers on Monday.

The report adds that when asked by a reporter to confirm that the U.S. administration had tried to take over a German company researching vaccines, Seehofer responded that he had heard about the effort “from several members of the government and it will be discussed tomorrow in the crisis team.” Another official said the company was offered a “large sum” of money.

The NY Times report quoted a German newspaper Die Welt am Sonntag, which first reported the story on Sunday, saying that Trump offered CureVac roughly $1 billion in exchange for exclusive access to the vaccine. The newspaper quoted a German government source who said Trump wanted the resulting vaccine “only for the United States.”

CureVac started research on a number of different vaccines and is now picking the two best prospects for clinical trials, the firm’s website indicates. The company hopes that by June or July it will have an experimental vaccine that could go into trials. Many other companies are also working on vaccines.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 16, 2020 12:34 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).