Russia’s Coronavirus Vaccine Out for Regulatory Review by August 2020

Russia is aiming to get approval for the first Covid-19 vaccine by August 10, 2020 or earlier. 

The last phase of the clinical trials will end by August 3rd.

AA.com.tr: Russia’s COVID-19 vaccine ‘ready’, says official

Screenshot AA.com.tr

According to aa.com.tr, Ruslan Tsalikov, the first deputy defense minister, said two groups of volunteers have successfully completed clinical trials, with all of them having “built up immunity.”

The vaccine, he said, was jointly developed by the Gamaleya National Research Centre for Epidemiology and Microbiology and the Main Military Clinical Burdenko Hospital.

Russian companies may get the go-ahead for mass production of the COVID-19 vaccine by August, another official said.

He added that Russia also plans to produce the vaccine being jointly developed by the Oxford University and pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca.

CNN: Russia says foreign inquiries about its potential fast-track Covid-19 vaccine are pouring in. But questions abound.

Screenshot CNN.com

Some have voiced their skepticism about the efficacy of the said vaccine. According to CNN, Russia has released no scientific data on its vaccine testing and CNN is unable to verify its claimed safety or effectiveness. Critics say the country’s push for a vaccine comes amid political pressure from the Kremlin, which is keen to portray Russia as a global scientific force.