Coronavirus - Putin Says Vaccine Has Been Approved For Use - BBC News

8/11/2020 Coronavirus: Putin says vaccine has been approved for use - BBC News
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Coronavirus: Putin says vaccine has been approved for use

1 hour ago
Coronavirus pandemic
REUTERS
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said a locally developed vaccine for Covid-19 has
been given regulatory approval after less than two months of testing on humans.
Mr Putin said the vaccine had passed all the required checks, adding that his daughter had
already been given it.
Officials have said they plan to start mass vaccination in October.
Experts have raised concerns about the speed of Russia's work, suggesting that researchers
might be cutting corners.
Amid fears that safety could have been compromised, the World Health Organization (WHO)
urged Russia last week to follow international guidelines for producing a vaccine against
Covid-19.
On Tuesday, the WHO said it had been in talks with Russian authorities about undertaking a
review of the vaccine.
Currently, the Russian vaccine is not among the WHO's list of six vaccines that have reached
phase three clinical trials, which involve more widespread testing in humans.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-53735718 1/17
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More than 100 vaccines around the world are in early development, with some of those being
tested on people in clinical trials.
Despite rapid progress, most experts think any vaccine would not become widely available
until mid-2021.
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What did President Putin say about the vaccine?

Calling it a world first, President Putin said the vaccine, developed by Moscow's Gamaleya
Institute, offered "sustainable immunity" against the coronavirus.
He said he knew the vaccine was "quite effective", without giving further details, and stressed
that it had passed "all needed checks".
Mr Putin also said the vaccine had been given to one of his daughters, who was feeling fine
despite a brief temperature increase.
"I think in this sense she took part in the experiment," Mr Putin said.
He did not specify which of his two daughters had received the vaccine. It is rare for President
Putin to talk publicly about his daughters. The lives of his daughters, named Maria Vorontsova
and Katerina Tikhonova in media reports, have been shrouded in secrecy.
What do we know about the vaccine?

Last week, the Russian government announced it was preparing to begin mass
vaccinations against coronavirus in October.
Russian scientists said early-stage trials of the vaccine had been completed and the results
were a success.
The Russian vaccine uses adapted strains of the adenovirus, a virus that usually causes the
common cold, to trigger an immune response.
EPA
But the vaccine's approval by Russian regulators comes before the completion of a larger
study involving thousands of people, known as a phase-three trial.
Experts consider these trials an essential part of the testing process.
Despite this, Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said on Tuesday the vaccine had
"proven to be highly effective and safe", hailing it as a big step towards "humankind's victory"
over Covid-19.
Russia's vaccine data cannot be verified
Russia is fast-tracking its Covid-19 vaccine at an extraordinary pace. It began the first clinical
trials on 1 June, months after teams in China, the US and Europe.
Unlike other groups, the Gamaleya Institute in Moscow has not released any safety or
immunity data from its studies. This makes it impossible for independent scientists to make an
assessment.
President Putin is keen to send a clear message to the world regarding the prowess of
Russian science. But simply being first is not enough.
No Covid-19 vaccine being developed has yet been shown to offer protection against
coronavirus. That central question remains unanswered.
What reaction has there been to Russia's vaccine efforts?

The progress Russia says it has made on a coronavirus vaccine has been met with
scepticism by health officials and media outlets in the US and Europe.
They fear Russia may be cutting corners in its attempts to win what some officials have
likened to the space race contested by the Soviet Union and the US during the Cold War.
Last month, America's leading infectious diseases expert Dr Anthony Fauci expressed doubts
about the rigour of the testing process in fast-track vaccine efforts in Russia and China.
WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier has echoed those sentiments, telling reporters on 4
August: "Sometimes individual researchers claim they have found something, which is of
course, as such, great news.
"But between finding or having a clue of maybe having a vaccine that works, and having gone
through all the stages, is a big difference."
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Home News Sport Reel Worklife Travel Future M

Coronavirus: Putin says vaccine has been approved for use

Officials have said they plan to start mass vaccination in October.

Coronavirus vaccine: When will we have one?

Encouraging results in vaccine trials

Russian spies target Covid-19 vaccine research

What did President Putin say about the vaccine?

What do we know about the vaccine?

Experts consider these trials an essential part of the testing process.

Russia's vaccine data cannot be verified

What reaction has there been to Russia's vaccine efforts?

Russia Coronavirus pandemic Vaccination

Share this story About sharing

More on this story

Coronavirus: Russia plans mass vaccination campaign in October

Coronavirus vaccine: When will we have one?

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'Bazooka man' in bid to become German chancellor

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BBC News BBC

BBC News BBC

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Advertise with us AdChoices / Do Not Sell My Info

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