VIENNA, February 4. / TASS /. The European Medicines Agency is to test vaccines against the new coronavirus from China and Russia, pushing aside political bias, if the manufacturers of those drugs apply. This opinion was expressed on Thursday by Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz.
"There should be no geopolitical taboos on admitting vaccines. The EMA, of course, should check the admission of Chinese vaccines or a Russian vaccine if they apply," Kurz wrote on Twitter.
Any additional vaccine that is effective and registered is important in the fight against the pandemic, he said. "Only together, on the basis of international cooperation, can we defeat this pandemic," the Chancellor added.
On February 2, the Austrian Ministry of Health, when asked by TASS about the possibility of using Sputnik V in case of registration in the EU, said that Austria has so far been able to cover its own needs for a vaccine, but is ready to study the possibility of using additional drugs as part of the Austrian vaccination strategy, if such are registered in the European Union.
On this day, the medical journal The Lancet published the results of the third phase of a clinical trial of a Russian vaccine, according to which it turned out to be one of the safest and most effective in the world. The effectiveness of the drug is 91.6%. Antibodies to coronavirus after vaccination with "Sputnik V" were found in 98% of volunteers. Following this, the chairman of the Austrian Freedom Party and former Austrian Transport Minister Norbert Hofer said that Austria, following Hungary's example, needs to contact Russia to purchase the Sputnik V vaccine and include the drug in its vaccination plan.
The Austrian Chancellor ruled out the possibility of using the Sputnik V vaccine in his country in November 2020, because the Austrian side has contractual obligations with European suppliers. Vaccination against coronavirus in Austria began in December 2020, drugs from Pfizer and BioNTech, as well as Moderna, are provided for. AstraZeneca vaccine is expected to be delivered in Vienna in the future.
