Coronavirus: Sputnik V efficacy 91.8% in elderly, says Russian ambassador

The first Russian vaccine against Covid-19, Sputnik V has been approved so far in 23 countries and it is expected that the EU will examine its application this month, Russian ambassador to Cyprus, Stanislav Osadchiy said on Wednesday.

He told CNA the overall efficacy of the vaccine was 91.6 per cent while among those over 60 it was 91.8 per cent.

Coronavirus antibodies were detected in 98 per cent of people vaccinated according to a peer-reviewed article in the medical journal The Lancet.

The vaccine has been given the green light in 23 countries. The ambassador said that it received approval in Russia, Belarus, Argentina, Bolivia, Serbia, Algeria, Palestine, Venezuela, Paraguay, Turkmenistan, Hungary, United Arab Emirates, Iran, Republic of Guinea, Tunisia, Armenia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Serbia, Lebanon, Myanmar, Pakistan and Mongolia.

As regards the number of those vaccinated, he said that according to data at the beginning of February, around two million people have been vaccinated in Russia, including around 400,000 residents of Moscow.

He said that on January 20, the Russian Direct Investment Fund submitted an application for the vaccine to be approved by the EU. The fund, he added, expects the examination procedure to begin this month.

The Sputnik V vaccine will be produced in India, Brazil, China and South Korea to supply the world market. The cost and price for one dose for foreign markets will be around €9, around half the price of the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines.

So far, he said, a number of European Union member states – Austria, Slovakia, Germany have expressed their interest in the Russian vaccine, while Hungary has granted approval and is purchasing the jab.

According to Osadchiy, the manufacturer of Sputnik V, believes the vaccine will be effective even against new coronavirus variants, while immunity could last up to two years, maybe longer.

He said a second vaccine was registered in Russia in October 2020. According to the results of the first and second clinical trials, the “EpiVacCorona” vaccine has an efficacy which reaches 100 per cent.