The legislative arm of the European Union has taken legal action against AstraZeneca over delays to the delivery of its Covid-19 vaccines to the bloc.  

In its lawsuit filed on Friday, the European Commission claims the drug maker breached the “terms of the contract or some terms of the contract have not been respected, and the company has not been in a position to come up with a reliable strategy to ensure timely delivery of doses,” Stefan De Keersmaecker, Health Spokesperson of the European Commission said Monday. 

A statement from AstraZeneca Monday said that the drugmaker “regrets” the EU’s decision to take legal action and believes that “any litigation is without merit.”

AstraZeneca acknowledged the difficulties posed by “very complex negotiations, and manufacturing challenges” but maintained that they have “fully complied with the Advance Purchase Agreement with the European Commission.”

Last Friday, Irish Health Minister Stephen Donnelly told the Irish parliament that Ireland had joined a European Commission legal action against AstraZeneca over its “complete failure to meet its delivery and contractual agreements for April, May and June.”

Donnelly’s remarks were quickly rebuffed by De Keersmaecker, who told CNN that the “decision to take legal action has not been taken at this point in time."

Speaking Monday, De Keersmaecker changed tack, saying that the EU wants “to make sure that there is a speedy delivery of a sufficient number of doses that European citizens are entitled to, and which have been promised on the basis of the contract.”

All 27 member states are aligned “in support of this procedure” he added. 

European Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides wrote on Twitter Monday that the EU’s “priority” is ensuring “COVID19 vaccine deliveries take place to protect the health of the European Union.”