Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz on Sunday said he was open to the idea that Russian Sputnik V or Chinese COVID-19 vaccines could be produced in Austria, if they were granted marketing authorization in the country. European Union.
“If the manufacturers of Russian and Chinese vaccines were given a green light in Europe and produced there, Austria would most certainly try to make production capacity available in the appropriate national companies” for these vaccines, the vaccine said. Conservative leader in an interview with the German Sunday newspaper Welt am Sonntag.
“Exactly like for manufacturers in other countries,” he insisted. “It’s about getting a safe vaccine, as fast as possible, regardless of who it’s made,” he continued.
Sebastian Kurz has also indicated that he could get the Russian vaccine injected if it is allowed in Europe.
“It only depends on their efficiency, their safety and their rapid availability; no geopolitical struggles, ”he said, while relations between the European Union and Russia have recently deteriorated, especially after the alleged poisoning and imprisonment of Russian opponent Alexeï Navalny.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel also said she was open to the controversial use of Sputnik V in the EU after the publication of positive scientific results on its effectiveness by a prestigious medical journal.
She also opened the door to the Chinese vaccine, pointing out that a country like “Serbia vaccinates faster” than the rest of Europe “with the Chinese vaccine”.
The EU has so far authorized three vaccines against COVID-19, those from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca.