Last checked at 
(Recasts with comments by Prime Minister Trudeau)
By Steve Scherer and Allison Martell
OTTAWA, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Canada will succeed in inoculating
its population despite "momentary disruptions" in the supply of
COVID-19 vaccines and is working closely with the new U.S.
administration to fight the disease, Prime Minister Justin
Trudeau said on Thursday.
Trudeau's Liberal government is under pressure over the slow
roll out of the vaccination program, caused in part by Pfizer
Inc temporarily cutting its promised deliveries and a
temporary slowdown of Moderna Inc doses.
"Obviously with this global supply chain around new products
and manufacturing scale-ups ... there are momentary disruptions
week over week. But we're still very much on track to get the
commitments fulfilled and get many vaccines to Canadians as
quickly as possible," Trudeau said in an interview.
Trudeau promised that tens of millions of doses would arrive
in the months to come and reiterated that every Canadian seeking
inoculation would be vaccinated by September.
As part of a bid to contain the spread of the disease,
Canada and the United States have closed their joint border to
non-essential travel. Trudeau said he and new U.S. President Joe
Biden agreed on a joint approach to fighting COVID-19.
"We're working very, very closely on all aspects of it from
borders to scientific research to indeed vaccines," he said.
"Our conversations are going to continue with the U.S. on
supply chains," he said, without giving details. Last year,
tensions arose between Canada and the administration of then
President Donald Trump over delays in the supply of personal
protective equipment.
Last year Trump also signed an executive order aimed at
keeping U.S.-produced vaccines in the United States. Trudeau did
not give a direct answer when asked whether he would press Biden
to scrap the order.
Canada does not yet have a vaccine manufacturing facility of
its own and is reliant on foreign suppliers.
Separately, federal Procurement Minister Anita Anand said
deliveries of AstraZeneca Plc's COVID-19 vaccine could
begin before the end of March, if Canada's health regulator
approves its use.
AstraZeneca Canada filed a rolling application for its
vaccine with Health Canada in October and is waiting for
approval from the drug regulator. Health Canada is expected to
complete its review soon.
In a separate briefing, federal officials confirmed Canada's
most recent shipment of Moderna Inc's COVID-19 vaccine
contained 22% fewer doses than originally expected and said the
next shipment, due in three weeks, would also be short.
Fortin added Moderna was working in "good faith" to deliver
those doses as quickly as possible to Canada and noted the
obstacles would be temporary.
Shipments of Pfizer Inc's vaccine, meanwhile, are
expected to ramp up later this month.
Trudeau's government is also facing criticism over tapping
into COVAX, a global vaccine-sharing initiative meant to help
low-income countries buy doses. Canada will get 1.9 million
AstraZeneca doses from the initiative.
"Our government will never apologize for doing everything
possible to get Canadians vaccinated as quickly as possible,"
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland told lawmakers.
(Reporting by Steve Scherer in Ottawa and Allison Martell in
Toronto; Additional reporting by David Ljunggren and Julie
Gordon in Ottawa; Editing by Mark Potter and Daniel Wallis)
