On the 4th in Belgrade, Serbia, a man is vaccinated with Sputnik V, a Russian-developed COVID-19 vaccine. Belgrade = AFP Yonhap News
Vaccines for the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19) in Russia and China, once treated as’cold food’, are now in a completely different situation. Russia’s vaccine, which was plagued by the cynicism of Western countries as synonymous with rapid development, jumped in ransom as a result of high preventive effects and a vaccine crisis. On the other hand, Chinese vaccines, which have been aggressively supporting the national level, are still being neglected due to a controversy over counterfeits.
Josef Borel, the senior head of foreign policy in the European Union (EU), will meet with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia for three days starting on the 4th (local time). Several issues, such as the detention of opposition leader Alexei Navalni, will be on the table, but foreign media believe that the Corona 19 vaccine will also become a key agenda. Russia’s TASS news agency said, “The two sides are discussing whether the EU will allow (Russian vaccine)’Sputnik V’.”
Sputnik V, developed by a research institute affiliated with the Russian government, was approved for the first time in the world in August of last year, but it has been drawing attention only half a year later. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the day before, “If EU approval is obtained, Sputnik V can also be welcomed”, and EU Commissioner Ursula von der Reien also said, “If the manufacturer discloses all relevant data, the use can be approved.” Expressed positive intentions.
Originally, Sputnik V was a freak. When the Russian authorities skipped the phase 3 clinical trial, which is the final gateway to the commercialization of the vaccine, and approved the use, the US and Europe responded with dismay, saying, “The efficacy and safety are unreliable.” Even when the institute announced that it had a 92% preventive effect in phase 3 clinical trials in November last year, voices pointing out “Russia’s overheated vaccine competition” were high.
The atmosphere changed sharply when the vaccine’s preventive effect was recently disclosed in Rensit, a global medical journal. When 91.6% of the immunity effect appeared in the phase 3 clinical trial, European countries, which were struggling with a shortage of supplies, sent a love call at once. It is known that Germany is also considering a plan to consign Sputnik V to its own company. “It seems that EU countries have fallen into the temptation of Sputnik V” (AFP).
500,000 doses of Russian Sputnik V vaccine are arriving at Khomeini Airport in Tehran, Iran on the 4th. Tehran=AP Yonhap News
Russia’s vaccine is expected to become even more valuable as the phenomenon of’rich rich, poor and poor’ in which vaccination is concentrated in some rich countries continues. According to the international statistics website World Omometer, the Corona 19 vaccine was vaccinated in 70 countries on the same day, with an amount of 1734 million doses, exceeding the global cumulative number of confirmed cases (15.15 million). It is news that raises hopes for an end to Corona 19, but considering that infectious diseases have occurred in more than 200 countries, 130 countries are still in the blind spot for vaccines. This vacancy can be filled with Russian vaccines, which are relatively inexpensive (10 dollars per time) and easy to store and distribute (2-8 degrees).
On the other hand, at the same time as Sputnik V, China’s ambitious Sinobac/Sinopam vaccine is struggling. Although it is exporting mainly to developing countries, it has not been able to overcome the insufficient reliability problem due to the large variation in clinical results. The synovac vaccine was effective in preventing 91% and 65.3%, respectively, in Turkey and Indonesia, but only exceeded the minimum standard (50%) recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) in Brazil. French President Emmanuel Macron said on the day, “The details of China’s Corona 19 vaccine are very lacking. It is very dangerous in the long run.” Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) diagnosed that “Russia beat out while China was slowing down in the final stages of vaccine development.”
Heo Gyeongju reporter [email protected]
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