GENEVA: Activists cheered, Big Pharma complained and government leaders assessed next steps on Thursday after the Biden administration’s blockbuster move to support an easing of patent and other protections on Covid-19 vaccines that many hope will help poorer countries get more doses and speed the end of the pandemic.

The move to support waiving intellectual property protections on vaccines under World Trade Organization rules marked a dramatic shift for the United States, which had previously lined up with many other developed nations opposed to the idea floated by India and South Africa.

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