US counter-intelligence chief worries about China, Russia threats to vaccine supply chain

Jonathan Landay, Reuters

WASHINGTON — The US counter-intelligence chief said on Tuesday he was worried about threats from China and Russia to disrupt the coronavirus vaccine supply chain in the United States.William Evanina, director of the US National Counterintelligence and Security Center, told an online Washington Post event that US adversaries were trying to interfere with Operation Warp Speed, the US government operation distributing the vaccines."Our adversaries are trying to disrupt that supply chain," he said. Asked which adversaries he was particularly concerned about, he replied, "I would say China and Russia right now."The Chinese and Russian embassies did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Evanina's assertion. Russia and China have denied US accusations that hackers linked to both governments tried to steal data from vaccine manufacturers.RELATED STORIES: <ul class='op-related-articles'>	<li><a href='https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/05/12/20/us-says-chinese-hacking-vaccine-research-reports'>US says Chinese hacking vaccine research: reports</a></li>	<li><a href='https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/12/04/20/hackers-targeting-covid-19-vaccine-supply-chain-ibm-warns'>Hackers targeting COVID-19 vaccine supply chain, IBM warns</a></li>	<li><a href='https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/11/09/20/us-first-nation-to-cross-10-million-covid-19-cases'>US first nation to cross 10 million COVID-19 cases</a></li></ul>US states are scrambling to accelerate inoculations as infections and deaths surge - COVID-19 has claimed on average about 3,200 lives nationwide every day over the past week.Since the pandemic began more than 10 months ago nearly 375,000 people in the country have died, according to a Reuters count.Evanina said that his agency was working with the US Army and the Department of Health and Human Services to ensure the safe "transportation" of the vaccines "from the manufacturing site to the end-user inoculation." RELATED VIDEO: <figure class='op-interactive'><iframe height='315' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/8wA5ko1l1wU?enablejsapi=1' width='560'></iframe></figure><div class='iwantbar'>Watch more in <a href='//www.iwantv.com.ph/'>iWantv</a> or <a href='//tfc.tv/'>TFC.tv</a></div>Vaccines available are made by Pfizer and BioNTech and Moderna. Nearly 9 million Americans have received the first of two doses, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, less than one-third of the 25 million doses distributed by the federal government.Public health experts have said no US state has so far come close to using up its federal vaccine allotments, a much slower-than-expected roll-out blamed in part on rigid rules sharply limiting who can be inoculated.

RELATED STORIES: <ul class='op-related-articles'>	<li><a href='https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/05/12/20/us-says-chinese-hacking-vaccine-research-reports'>US says Chinese hacking vaccine research: reports</a></li>	<li><a href='https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/12/04/20/hackers-targeting-covid-19-vaccine-supply-chain-ibm-warns'>Hackers targeting COVID-19 vaccine supply chain, IBM warns</a></li>	<li><a href='https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/11/09/20/us-first-nation-to-cross-10-million-covid-19-cases'>US first nation to cross 10 million COVID-19 cases</a></li></ul>US states are scrambling to accelerate inoculations as infections and deaths surge - COVID-19 has claimed on average about 3,200 lives nationwide every day over the past week.Since the pandemic began more than 10 months ago nearly 375,000 people in the country have died, according to a Reuters count.Evanina said that his agency was working with the US Army and the Department of Health and Human Services to ensure the safe "transportation" of the vaccines "from the manufacturing site to the end-user inoculation." RELATED VIDEO: <figure class='op-interactive'><iframe height='315' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/8wA5ko1l1wU?enablejsapi=1' width='560'></iframe></figure><div class='iwantbar'>Watch more in <a href='//www.iwantv.com.ph/'>iWantv</a> or <a href='//tfc.tv/'>TFC.tv</a></div>Vaccines available are made by Pfizer and BioNTech and Moderna. Nearly 9 million Americans have received the first of two doses, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, less than one-third of the 25 million doses distributed by the federal government.Public health experts have said no US state has so far come close to using up its federal vaccine allotments, a much slower-than-expected roll-out blamed in part on rigid rules sharply limiting who can be inoculated.

"Our adversaries are trying to disrupt that supply chain," he said. Asked which adversaries he was particularly concerned about, he replied, "I would say China and Russia right now."The Chinese and Russian embassies did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Evanina's assertion. Russia and China have denied US accusations that hackers linked to both governments tried to steal data from vaccine manufacturers.

WASHINGTON — The US counter-intelligence chief said on Tuesday he was worried about threats from China and Russia to disrupt the coronavirus vaccine supply chain in the United States.William Evanina, director of the US National Counterintelligence and Security Center, told an online Washington Post event that US adversaries were trying to interfere with Operation Warp Speed, the US government operation distributing the vaccines.

Russia and China have denied US accusations that hackers linked to both governments tried to steal data from vaccine manufacturers.

Russia and China have denied US accusations that hackers linked to both governments tried to steal data from vaccine manufacturers.

US counter-intelligence chief worries about China, Russia threats to vaccine supply chain | ABS-CBN News

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US counter-intelligence chief worries about China, Russia threats to vaccine supply chain

US counter-intelligence chief worries about China, Russia threats to vaccine supply chain