03/08/2021 9:53 AM
Clarín.com
World
Updated 03/08/2021 10:07
The president of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) "advised against" the member countries of the European Union to urgently authorize the Russian vaccine against COVID-19, Sputnik V,
citing insufficient data
on vaccinated people.
"It's a bit like Russian roulette," Christa Wirthumer-Hoche, chairwoman of the board of directors, said in an interview with Austrian television channel ORF on Sunday.
"We need documents that we can review. At the moment,
we do not have data on the side effects
of those vaccinated," he stressed.
"We are in the dark and that is why I strongly advise against issuing a national authorization as a matter of urgency," added Wirthumer-Hoche, urging countries to wait for the green light from the European regulator.
Sputnik V took a key step towards its implementation in the European Union (EU) last week with the start of its review by the Amsterdam-based EMA.
Following this announcement, Russian authorities said they were prepared to
supply vaccines to 50 million Europeans
starting in June.
"We will be able to have Sputnik V on the market in the future, but only when we have examined the necessary data" based on "European standards for quality and efficiency controls," the EMA representative insisted.
Several EU countries, impatient for a process considered too slow, are
turning to vaccines not yet approved
, such as Hungary, which began administering the Russian vaccine to its population last month.
The Czech Republic and Slovakia have also placed orders with Russia.
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz discussed at the end of February with Russian President Vladimir Putin "the possibility" of Sputnik V deliveries, arguing that vaccines should not be the
subject of "geopolitical battles
."
However, Kurz said he would wait for EMA approval before using the vaccine in Austria.
Source: AFP
