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Coronavirus pandemic

Egyptian specialists perform clinical trials of Russian Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine

The Russian vaccine is currently a priority for research

CAIRO, January 17. /TASS/. Specialists from the Ministry of Health and Population of Egypt perform priority trials for the Russian-made Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine, Ministerial Aide Mohammed Hassani said, according to Al-Watan report.

"Currently, the Ministry of Health research committee carries out clinical trials of the Sputnik V vaccine," he said. "The Russian vaccine is currently a priority for research, especially considering that its specifications from the production standpoint are very similar to the AstraZeneca product."

According to the official, clinical trials will make it possible to obtain information in advantages of different vaccines.

"Egypt already carried out clinical trials of the China-made Sinopharm vaccine involving 3,000 volunteers," the aide said.

On January 14, Russian Embassy in Cairo announced that Russia is ready to provide Egypt with the Sputnik V vaccine, and hand over the production technology.

Currently, only the Sinopharm vaccine is registered in Egypt. Previously, Cairo disclosed that several other vaccines undergo clinical trials - including one domestically developed vaccine.

Middle East conflict

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Egypt lost more than 60% of Suez Canal revenues in 2024 — administration

This stood at about $7 bln, in the outgoing year

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Canadian ministers going to US for consultations with Trump’s administration — TV

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Denmark to strengthen control over Greenland after Trump’s words — top defense official

Denmark plans to increase the number of personnel at the Joint Arctic Command in the Greenlandic capital of Nuuk

Cooperation between Russia, North Korea meets vital interests of their peoples — KCNA

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Azerbaijan Airlines plane tried to land twice at Aktau airport before crash

The Aktau air traffic controller promptly performed all necessary measures for the aircraft’s landing

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29 people had been hospitalized

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FSB eliminates extremists who were plotting bomb blast outside police station in Moscow

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Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency investigates passenger jet’s crash near Aktau

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Biden tasks Pentagon with boosting military aid to Kiev

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UN Secretary-General condemns escalation between Israel, Yemen

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South Korean acting president accepts impeachment by parliament

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The US Department of Defense "has no statement or information to provide," a department’s spokesperson said

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Israel only starting to retaliate to Yemen’s Houthis — Netanyahu

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Putin says Biden in 2021 proposed to postpone Ukraine's admission to NATO

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The Cordelia Moon is 274 meters long and 50 meters wide

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Andrey Marochko added that Russian servicemen "start preparing the way for further advancement southwest of this locality"

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Zelensky defines essence of next summit on Ukraine in four-letter explicit word — Lavrov

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Scientists present Russia's first 50-qubit cold atom quantum computer — MSU

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Russia says it carried out 38 strikes with high-precision weapons over past week

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Decision-making centers in Kiev may be targets of Russia’s strikes, says Lavrov

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FSB foils series of assassination attempts on senior Russian defense officials

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Two families with children return to Russia from Syria — commissioner

An aircraft landed in the Moscow Region, Maria Lvova-Belova said

Russian fighters control about 40% of Terny in Donetsk region, military expert says

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No panic aboard crashed Azerbaijan Airlines plane, eyewitness says

The Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190, en route from Baku to Grozny, crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, on December 25

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China imposes sanctions on seven US military-industrial companies over Taiwan — MFA

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Lukashenko says he discussed gas supplies to Europe with Putin, Russia ready to sell them

The Belarusian leader believes that Germany should restore relations with Russia for the sake of its own economy

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Aleksandr Dubinsky recalled the unsuccessful financing of Ukraine in the middle of the year

Foreign powers seek to provoke mass riots in Syria — source

On December 27, security forces formed by the new Syrian government blocked districts of the city of Tartus, where Alawites organized riots

Finnish police detain oil tanker on suspicion of damaging communication cables

It is also reported that the Eagle S "noticeably slowed down" presumably at the moment when the cable between Finland and Estonia was damaged

Russia’s still paying for gas transit through Ukraine — Putin

Pumping also continues through the Sudzha station, where military activities are ongoing

Kazakhstan’s Aktau Airport was aware of oxygen cylinder blast before plane’s crash

KazAeroNavigation’s flight director immediately notified all emergency services

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Thailand accepts invitation to become BRICS partner state — MFA

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Oboronlogistics company blames loss of its ship Ursa Major on terrorist attack

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Russia’s Chechnya ships 200 ‘Jihad mobile’ vehicles for special military operation

The authorities of Chechnya handed over 200 "Jihad mobile"

France made several requests to Russia on Ukraine topic through private channels — Lavrov

According to the Russian foreign minister, Paris proposed "to assist and facilitate dialogue on the Ukrainian issue"

Kremlin says no comment on 'highly specialized' issue of Finland’s seizure of oil tanker

On December 25, Reuters reported that Finland’s police and border guards have detained an oil tanker, which flies under the flag of the Cook Islands, suspecting that an anchor of the vessel may have damaged the EstLink 2 cable

US-made Abrams tanks in Taiwan won’t help island — China’s defense ministry

The Chinese People's Liberation Army will comprehensively strengthen military training to prevent a separatist plot by supporters of Taiwan independence and interference by outside forces, according to Spokesman Zhang Xiaogang

Russian troops liberate Novy Trud community in Donbass region over past day

Russia’s Battlegroup South inflicted roughly 245 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed six enemy howitzers in its area of responsibility over the past day, the Defense Ministry reported

Expert sees the collective West behind Ursa Major terrorist attack

Alexander Stepanov emphasized that "the goal of the enemy’s terrorist campaign on international shipping routes was to disrupt trade and economic cooperation"

IN BRIEF: What is known about passenger plane crash in Kazakhstan

According to the Kazakh Transport Ministry, the plane belonged to Azerbaijan Airlines

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Damage also came from sweeping fires that were set off by strikes on oil tanks in both ports

NATO to boost military presence in Baltic Sea following cable incidents — Rutte

Earlier, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas attributed responsibility for the Baltic Sea incidents to the tanker fleet transporting Russian oil, even before the investigation concluded

Termination of transit of Russian gas to kill Ukraine’s gas transport system — experts

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