Chennai [India], January 2 : In his address on Friday at IIT Madras, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar highlighted India's pivotal role in supporting global COVID-19 vaccination efforts. Reflecting on the emotional impact of the country's vaccine distribution, he said, "In my entire career, I have never seen anything having a greater emotional impact on the rest of the world than giving vaccines. I've actually had people who tear up when they remember the first vaccine shipment."
"COVID was a bad memory. We have put it all behind us. But at that time, there were developed countries, western countries, who had stocked up eight times the number of vaccines as their population and next to them were small countries to whom they were not willing to give 10,000 doses. We were someone who had the responsibility of 1.4 billion people. We felt at that time giving those countries 100-200 thousand doses was something which would be a gesture of solidarity, would be make or break for them. Today, we talk less about vaccines. When I go to Latin America, when I go to small island states, people from the Caribbean, people from the Pacific, say, "we have no chance of getting within smelling distance of vaccine, but for the fact that you people give it to us," he added.
The COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges, with countries racing to secure limited vaccine supplies. Developed nations stockpiled doses far beyond their population needs, while smaller nations struggled to access even a few thousand. In this context, India stepped up with a sense of responsibility toward its own 1.4 billion citizens while extending a helping hand to the world. According to Dr. Jaishankar, providing even 100,000 to 200,000 doses to smaller countries was not just a gesture but was often a lifeline.
India's vaccine diplomacy reached corners of the globe where access to immunization would otherwise have been nearly impossible. From Latin America to small island states in the Caribbean and the Pacific, officials repeatedly acknowledged that without India's support, their populations would have been left behind. "People from the Caribbean, people from the Pacific, say, 'we have no chance of getting within smelling distance of vaccine, but for the fact that you people give it to us,'" Dr. Jaishankar said, emphasizing the profound human impact of these efforts.
Beyond humanitarian support, India's actions reflected its emergence as a modern nation-state capable of combining scale with compassion. By manufacturing millions of vaccine doses and distributing them to countries in need, India not only helped curb the pandemic but also strengthened global solidarity in an uncertain time.
Experts say India's vaccine outreach also underscored its soft power on the world stage. The initiative demonstrated that a large developing nation could act decisively in a crisis, balancing domestic priorities with international responsibilities. For many countries, India's vaccines were the first real hope during one of the darkest periods of the pandemic.
In Dr. Jaishankar's words, India's vaccine efforts were not just about doses - they were "gestures of solidarity" that made a tangible difference to millions across the globe, leaving a lasting emotional and diplomatic imprint on the international community.
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