Vladimir Putin will finally receive the Covid-19 vaccine tomorrow, he appeared Monday as he led Moscow’s efforts to market his Sputnik V injection to flailing Europe.
Russia’s 68-year-old leader has come under fire from Kremlin critics for curbing an already widespread vaccine laziness by failing to get an injection so far.
But he told health officials in a televised meeting that ‘vaccination is everyone’s voluntary choice … by the way, I plan to make myself a- tomorrow ‘.
Putin did not reveal whether he would get Sputnik V or one of the other two Russian-made kicks agreed before late trials are completed.
Sputnik V was ripped off the market last year before results came back from a Phase III test, but Europe has warmed to the injection since test results suggest it is highly effective.
Putin discussed the possible use of the injection in Europe in a deep-frozen call by European Council leader Charles Michel on Monday, the Kremlin said.
Vladimir Putin, pictured, is expected to receive the first dose of coronavirus vaccine on Tuesday although he did not say which one it would be.
Putin spoke to European Council President Charles Michel (pictured) today and discussed the possible use of Sputnik V in such a frozen call.
Putin told Michel today that Russia was ready to cooperate with Brussels but tasted what he called the EU’s ‘controversial’ stance towards Moscow.
Russia-Western relations have recalled a series of cases including the poisoning and imprisonment of Putin’s most prominent critic, Alexei Navalny.
Nonetheless, Putin and Michel discussed the potential use of Sputnik V in Europe – which has already begun after Hungary and others broke away from the EU scheme.
Some German politicians have also supported Sputnik V, including several major statesmen from ancient East Germany where Russian-made jobs were common.
Russia registered the vaccine in August last year, ahead of large – scale clinical trials, raising concerns among many experts about the fast – track process.
But test results published in the Lancet last month showed that Sputnik V had a 91.6 percent efficiency, going a little further to dispel Western doubts about the picture.
EU regulators are examining the test data in a step towards a possible European Medicines Agency sanction in what would be a propaganda coup for Putin.
Hungary has already broken up with the EU to buy their own Sputnik V jobs (pictured, a health worker gives a dose of Sputnik V to a patient in Szekesfehervar, Hungary on Sunday)
Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said today that experts from the EMA will travel to Russia on April 10 to review clinical trials conducted on the vaccine.
The Russian president today gave a taste of European politicians who have questioned the need for a Russian-made injection, describing their views as ‘weird’.
‘Despite disregard for our vaccine, more and more countries are showing interest in it,’ Putin said.
‘We are not imposing anything on anyone … What are the interests of such people – those of pharmaceutical companies or the interests of citizens of European countries ?,’ he asked.
On Sunday, EU interior market commissioner Thierry Breton said Europe had no need for Sputnik V, ‘prompting a strong response from Moscow.
Russian officials have accused Britain of being ‘clearly prejudiced’ against the injection because it was Russian, adding that it has been approved for use in 55 countries.
‘Europeans want a choice of safe and effective vaccines, which you have not been successful in so far,’ said officials at Russia’s sovereign wealth fund.
If the British views were an official position of the EU, ‘he said,’ please tell us that there is no reason to pursue EMA approval because of your political bias. ‘
Sputnik V (pictured) was first met with suspicion in the West after it was ruled out without proper testing but data published in the Lancet last month showed it was 91.6 percent effective.
Russia lags behind many other major countries in its immunization progress to date, with only 4.3 percent of its 146million population receiving at least one dose.
Two other Russian vaccines, EpiVacCorona and CoviVac, have also received regulatory approval before completing end-of-stage trials.
These trials are still ongoing, and no data on the efficacy of both vaccines have been published to date.
Dmitry Peskov’s dangerous Putin declined to say which of the three Putin he will take on Tuesday, saying only that ‘all of them are good and reliable.’
According to the Russian president, 6.3 million people in Russia have already received at least one dose, and more than 4.3 million have received two doses.
Many in Russia are skeptical about getting the vaccine, with an opinion poll earlier this month showing that less than a third were willing to inject.
The same study showed nearly two-thirds say they believe the coronavirus is a human biological weapon.
By Monday, Russia had recorded more than 4.4 million cases of the coronavirus and more than 95,000 deaths.