Thailand says still sharing bird flu samples

BANGKOK, March 22 (Reuters) - Thailand shares Indonesia's concerns about access to bird flu vaccines, but has not decided to restrict access to its samples of the virus, a senior Health Ministry official said on Thursday.

"This morning, our health minister said he supports Indonesia, but that does not mean that we are not going to share the virus," Suwit Wibulpolprasert, a senior adviser to Health Minister Mongkol na Songkhla, told Reuters.

"We support them on the basis that the virus be shared on the the basis of a equitable distribution of the products from the virus," he said.

Asked if Thailand had decided to withhold samples from the World Health Organisation (WHO), Suwit said: "No, never. Definitely not."

Indonesia, which has the world's highest bird flu death toll, has created a roadblock to vaccine development by demanding guarantees before sharing virus samples.

Sharing of virus samples is crucial as it allows experts to study their make-up and map the evolution and geographical spread of any particular strain. Samples are also used to make vaccines.

Critics say the virus-sharing scheme operated by the WHO does not guarantee poor countries access to vaccines.

Suwit said Bangkok would press for an equitable deal at a meeting of the WHO and health ministers in Jakarta next week.

"This will discuss how we can come up with a good solution so that the sharing of the virus can continue," Suwit said.