(WATCH) First European Union nation gets Russia's Sputnik V vaccine to fight Covid-19, as samples arrive in Budapest
Hungary has become the first country in the European Union to receive a batch of Russia's Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine as a container with samples arrived in Budapest, on Thursday, and was handed over to Hungarian medics.
"Vaccine samples manufactured in Russia have arrived in Budapest,” Hungary’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto confirmed on his Facebook page as he posted footage demonstrating the formula’s arrival at the Hungarian capital’s airport.
An exclusive video of #SputnikV vaccine arriving in Hungary, the first EU country to receive the Russian vaccine pic.twitter.com/HWUrToMEcR
— Sputnik V (@sputnikvaccine) November 19, 2020
“Now, it is the turn of Hungarian experts” to study the vaccine, the minister said, adding that it would help them “make the most informed decision possible.”
Earlier, Moscow and Budapest agreed on purchases of Sputnik V vaccine by Hungary despite skepticism from Brussels that excluded the jab from its early order scheme. Szijjarto defended his nation’s decision in an interview to RT, saying that international cooperation in such an important field should not be hindered by political games.
Also on rt.com ‘It’s about people’s lives’: Vaccines should not be politicized & Hungary will work with everyone on Covid-19, Hungarian FM to RTLater, Russia’s Ministry of Industry and Trade said that the two nations are considering joint Hungarian-based production of the jabs.
Russia was the first country to register its Covid-19 vaccine in September. In early November, the vaccine's developers said that it appears to have 92 percent efficacy, citing preliminary results of large-scale Phase III clinical trials.
Outside the European Union, Russia has held negotiations with an array of potential partners for vaccine development and production, including India, Mexico, Brazil, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Belarus.
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