It’s Official! Russia’s Coronavirus Vaccine Registered and Ready for Use

Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova said that the vaccination of doctors could start as early as this month.

The health ministry said in Tuesday's statement that the vaccine is expected to provide immunity from the coronavirus for up to two years.

Putin emphasized that vaccination will be voluntary,

Russian officials have said that large-scale production of the vaccine will start in September, and mass vaccination may begin as early as October.

When the pandemic struck Russia, Putin ordered state officials to shorten the time of clinical trials for potential coronavirus vaccines.

Becoming the first country in the world to develop a vaccine was a matter of national prestige for the Kremlin as it tries to assert the image of Russia as a global power.

State television stations and other media have praised scientists working on it and presented the work the envy of other nations.

Professor Alexander Gintsburg, head of the Gamaleya institute that developed the vaccine, raised eyebrows in May when he said that he and other researchers tried the vaccine on themselves.

Read also: Russia on a Mission to Produce Millions of Covid-19 Vaccines by 2021

Human studies started June 17 among 76 volunteers. Half were injected with a vaccine in liquid form and the other half with a vaccine that came as soluble powder.

Some in the first half were recruited from the military, which raised concerns that servicemen may have been pressured to participate.

Amid Russia's rush to become the first to create a vaccine, the US, Britain, and Canada last month accused Russia of using hackers to steal vaccine research from Western labs.

Read also: Western Governments Accuse Russia of Hacking Virus Vaccine Trials

As the trials were declared completed, questions arose about the vaccine’s safety and effectiveness.

Some experts scoffed at Russian authorities' assurances that the vaccine drug produced the desired immune response and caused no significant side effects, pointing out that such claims need to be backed by published scientific data.

The World Health Organization said all vaccine candidates should go through full stages of testing before being rolled out.

Experts have warned that vaccines that are not properly tested can cause harm in many ways — from a negative impact on health to creating a false sense of security or undermining trust in vaccinations. 

(Writer: Vladimir Isachenkov) 

Source: https://apnews.com/fcda62ad992db414d65f23b2adb78e44