Russian Vaccine Rejected Even by Its Own Citizens

President Putin Also Has Not Received the Vaccine

Source: WSJ

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Russia's COVID-19 vaccine, which was the first in the world to be developed last year, is reportedly being shunned by its own citizens.

On the 8th (local time), the Levada Center, a polling organization, reported to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that only one-third of Russian citizens expressed willingness to receive the Sputnik V vaccine.

The WSJ reported that vaccine skepticism is driven by deep distrust of authorities stemming from the Soviet era, along with conspiracy theories about COVID-19.

According to the Levada Center's survey, two-thirds of respondents believe that COVID-19 was created as a biological weapon. The perception that COVID-19 is not particularly dangerous and that the government is exaggerating the situation is also fueling vaccine distrust.

Amid vaccine skepticism, Russia's vaccination rate stands at 3.5%, significantly lower compared to the United States (17.1%) and the United Kingdom (32.1%).

Dmitry Peskov, spokesperson for the Kremlin, recently told reporters, "There is no shortage of vaccines." Russia has approved the use of two other COVID-19 vaccines in addition to Sputnik V.

Even President Putin, who has praised the Sputnik V vaccine in interviews with public broadcasters and in talks with foreign leaders, has not yet been vaccinated. The Kremlin stated that President Putin plans to receive the vaccine in late summer or early autumn.

On the other hand, the vaccine's status in the international community is quite different. Last month, Sputnik V's international reputation began to improve after a study published in the prestigious international medical journal The Lancet reported a 91.6% efficacy rate in clinical trials.

More than 40 countries have approved the use of Sputnik V. The European Medicines Agency (EMA), the European Union's regulatory body for medicines, is currently reviewing it.