Russia looks to approval first Coronavirus vaccine by August

Russia claims it is on track to pull a “Sputnik” and surprise the world by becoming the first country to approve a coronavirus vaccine – in less than two weeks.

The vaccine was created by the state-run, Moscow-based Gamaleya Institute, which is aiming to register it by August 10 or earlier, according to the head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, which is funding the research.

It’s a Sputnik moment, Kirill Dmitriev told CNN, referring to the Soviet Union’s 1957 launch of the world’s first successful satellite. “Americans were surprised when they heard Sputnik’s beeping. It’s the same with this vaccine. Russia will have got there first.”

Mr Dmitriev later told The Wall Street Journal the vaccine, which has gone through two phases of testing – including on Russian soldiers, billionaire tycoons and government officials – would be registered with the Health Ministry by August 14.

The claims have been met with some scepticism over the vaccine’s safety and efficacy, and fears Russia has cut corners. The country has not released any scientific data on its vaccine testing to date, although it says it is currently being compiled and will be made available for peer review in early August.

Several other vaccines are in various phases of development around the world, including one from Moderna with US government backing, which this week entered final clinical trials. Another vaccine being developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca has shown positive early results.

Russia says its vaccine was quick to develop because it is a modified version of one already created to fight related diseases – a similar method used by Moderna, which has built its vaccine on the backbone of one it had been developing for MERS.

The country says it has fast-tracked the approval process due to its severe coronavirus problem, with more than 800,000 cases. “Our scientists focused not on being the first but on protecting people,” Mr Dmitriev told CNN.

The news comes weeks after the Kremlin denied allegations by the US, UK and Canada that a Russian hacking group “almost certainly” backed by intelligence services had been attempting to steal coronavirus vaccine research.

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