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Coronavirus pandemic

Italian premier says Sputnik V purchases by his country possible

Russia’s Sputnik V is ranked among the world’s top three most popular coronavirus vaccines

ROME, March 20. /TASS/. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said on Friday he does not rule out the possibility of his country authorizing the use of Russia’s Sputnik V anti-coronavirus vaccine on its territory, if the European community fails to make a coordinated decision.

"We will order [Sputnik V] and we will see. If European coordination is not working, especially in healthcare, we should be ready to act on our own. And I’m not the only person saying this," Draghi said when answering to a TASS correspondent’s question during his first press conference as the premier of Italy.

"[German Chancellor Angela] Merkel told me that if EMA [the European Medicines Agency] approves Sputnik V, it will be fine, but if not - Germany will do it. This is ordinary pragmatism. We should rely on European unity, but if it cannot be reached, we should act in a different fashion," the premier said.

Earlier, Merkel said Germany may purchase Sputnik V from Russia on a national level if the EU fails to find a common decision to this issue.

The European Medicines Agency said on March 4 it had begun Sputnik V evaluation procedures to look at its compliance with the EU efficacy, safety and quality standards.

Russia’s Sputnik V is ranked among the world’s top three most popular coronavirus vaccines. By today, it has been registered for use in over 50 countries worldwide with an overall population of more than 1.3 billion.

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