EKO HOT BLOG reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed optimism on Sunday for the World Health Organization to quickly approve the country’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, saying the action is critical to expanding worldwide supplies.
During a video conference with Francesco Rocca, head of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Putin stated that gaining the WHO’s vetting is required in order to promote the Russian vaccine more widely throughout the world, including through free supply.
Vladimir Putin
“We intend to expand such assistance,” Putin said.
The Russian president also stated that WHO clearance should allow Russians and those who have received the Sputnik V vaccination to travel more freely throughout the world. He stated that Sputnik V was received by about 200 million individuals globally.
Putin was immunized with Sputnik V in the spring, and he received a booster injection of Sputnik Light, the one-dose form, last month. He also stated that he took an experimental nasal form of Sputnik V a few days after receiving his booster shot, and that he felt good with no negative effects.
The Gamaleya Institute, which created Sputnik V, stated that the vaccine should be effective against the omicron variety of COVID-19, but that it would immediately begin working on altering it to oppose the new variation.
Russia was the first country in the world to approve a coronavirus vaccine, launching Sputnik V in August 2020, and has a enough supply. However, adoption has been sluggish, owing in part to contradictory signals from Russian officials.
In recent months, Russia has experienced its bloodiest and greatest spike of coronavirus cases, with infections and deaths reaching all-time highs and only just declining. According to the government’s coronavirus task committee, Russia has the greatest verified pandemic death toll in Europe, with over 281,000 deaths. But a report released Friday by the state statistics agency Rosstat, which uses broader criteria, put the the overall number of virus-linked deaths between April 2020 and October 2021 to over 537,000 — almost twice the official toll.
Putin, who despite a surge in infections in Russia has repeatedly argued that vaccinations should remain voluntary, emphasized Sunday that Russian authorities have been tried to use “persuasion and not pressure” and worked to dispel “prejudices and myths driving the aversion to vaccination.”
Russia’s quick approval of Sputnik V drew criticism abroad, because at the time it had only been tested on a few dozen people. But a study published in British medical journal The Lancet in February showed the Sputnik V is 91% effective and appears to prevent inoculated individuals from becoming severely ill with COVID-19.
Russia has actively promoted Sputnik V around the world but faced bottlenecks in shipping the amounts it promised. Countries in Latin America have complained about delays in getting the second Sputnik V shot.
The World Health Organization has been reviewing data about Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine as part of the approval process. Such approval could pave the way for its inclusion into the COVAX program that is shipping COVID-19 vaccines to scores of countries around the world based on need.
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