BERLIN, August 18. /TASS/. The authorities of Germany’s federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania will not purchase Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine so far as the vaccine has not yet obtained the European certification, the NDR radio station reported with reference to sources in the region’s government on Wednesday.
The authorities of the state announced the plans to purchase 1 mln doses of the vaccine in April. For the purchase to be physically implemented the certificate granted by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) was required. Germany has acquired enough vaccines made by other producers and vaccinated more than half of the adult population since then, however, the EMA’s permit has not been given.
It was decided to put the purchase plans on hold to prevent spending of taxpayers’ money on paperwork in the current settings as the end result of the deal depends on the European institution, which is why it cannot be guaranteed. In April 20,000 euro was spent on the letter of intent formation, according to the report.
Germany launched its vaccination drive against the coronavirus last December. During this time the first dose of the jab has been received by 63.5% of the population, or approximately 52.8 mln people, whereas 48 mln people, or 57.8% of the population, have been fully vaccinated.
Germany has said on numerous occasions that it is ready in principle to use vaccines developed outside the EU, with the key condition laid out that the vaccine must be certified by the European Medicines Agency.
Sputnik V was certified in Russia on August 11, 2020, becoming the first officially registered vaccine against the coronavirus worldwide. The vaccine is based on a proven and well-studied platform of human adenoviral vectors, which cause the common cold and have been around for thousands of years. Sputnik V has pioneered the use of heterogeneous boosting (two different vectors for the two shots in a course of vaccination among COVID vaccines). This approach provides for immunity with a longer duration than vaccines using the same delivery mechanism for both shots. It has so far been registered in 68 countries with a total population of more than 3.7 bln people. Efficacy of Sputnik V is 97.6% based on the analysis of data on the coronavirus infection rate among those in Russia vaccinated with both components of Sputnik V from December 5, 2020 to March 31, 2021. The data obtained during mass vaccinations with Sputnik V in various countries, including Argentina, Bahrain, Hungary, Mexico, Serbia, the Philippines, the UAE and others, demonstrated the absence of serious adverse events, including myocarditis or cerebral venous thrombosis. Additionally, in those countries where multiple vaccines are used simultaneously, the Russian vaccine has demonstrated one of the best safety and efficacy parameters.