"Claims of Hacking Pyeongchang Olympics and Vaccine Technology Are Slander"
"AstraZeneca and Russian Vaccines Have Different Core Technologies"
[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The Russian ambassador to the UK claimed that the accusations by US and UK intelligence agencies regarding Russia's cyberattacks on the Pyeongchang Olympics are political maneuvers by the West ahead of the US presidential election, and that slander against Russia will continue until the election is over. Earlier, the US Department of Justice and the UK Foreign Office jointly announced that there were cyberattacks by Russian hacker groups during the Pyeongchang Olympics and that six main suspects would be indicted.
According to Russia's TASS news agency on the 22nd (local time), Andrey Kelin, the Russian ambassador to London, UK, criticized, "The US and UK intelligence agencies' accusations of Russian cyberattacks are political maneuvers," adding, "Currently, the US government is plotting to divert social attention to accusations against Russia ahead of the election, and the UK is supporting this." He further stated, "If the Republican Party loses the upcoming US election, all responsibility will be blamed on Russia, and similarly, if the Democratic Party loses, all responsibility will also fall on Russia."
Ambassador Kelin asserted, "There is no basis for the claim that Russia hacked the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine technology jointly developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University," adding, "Russia's Sputnik V vaccine was developed based on a human adenovirus, while AstraZeneca's vaccine is based on a chimpanzee adenovirus, so completely different technologies were applied." He emphasized, "It is very unfortunate and wrong that a purely scientific and medical issue like vaccine development is being turned into a political matter, and now is the time for international cooperation to fight COVID-19."
He criticized, "New accusations and attacks against Russia will continue until the US election is over," adding, "London and other Western European countries will pour out various criticisms, but ultimately they will share the common goal of portraying Russia as a malicious force and undermining the credibility of our vaccine."
Earlier, on the 20th, the US Department of Justice and the UK Foreign Office announced that the Russian military intelligence agency conducted cyberattacks during the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics and recently attempted attacks on the Tokyo Olympics organizing committee and sponsors, and that six main operatives leading these attacks would be indicted.
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