LONDON, October 22. /TASS/. Another wave of accusations may come from London and Washington ahead of the presidential elections in the United States, Russian Ambassador to the United Kingdom Andrei Kelin told TASS following this week’s blaming of Russian special services for committing cyberattacks.
"I have a feeling that this is a coordinated campaign that will unfold in several waves. It is a support act Washington now needs, a social put-up job ahead of the upcoming elections to keep on placing all the blame on Russia in a bid to excuse whatever happens in America by Russia’s actions," he said. "So, it is quite expectable that Russia will be held to blame in case the Republicans lose the race. Likewise, it will be blamed by the Democrats if they lose."
The ambassador also commented on the Times’ reports alleging that Russia had indulged in misinformation about the anti-coronavirus vaccine developed jointly by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, a British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical company.
"It is nothing but competition. As you know, the [Russian] Sputnik V vaccine was developed on the basis of a human adenovirus and is a two-component vaccine whereas the vaccine developed by Oxford and AstraZeneca is a one-component vaccine on the basis of a chimpanzee adenovirus, which has not yet been studied. But in this case it is a purely scientific, medical matter and it is especially sad that it is being converted into a political matter, which is an absolutely wrong thing to do," he said, adding that international cooperation is needed to combat the coronavirus infection.
"We don’t want to demonize anyone and call for consolidating efforts, but there are certain forces that are seeking to drive a wedge by discrediting vaccines made in Russia," Kelin added.
According to the diplomat, the Russia is trying to work with "any forces that will have a constructive position."
"If there is no demand for political cooperation with Russia, we will cooperate in the economic and humanitarian areas and we will work with those countries and continents that are open for cooperation with us," he stressed. "If we don’t see it with London or other Western European countries, that's no big deal. It will eventually happen."