London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 18, 2025

Putin Slams Sputnik V Covid Vaccine Criticism, To Get Jab Tomorrow

Putin Slams Sputnik V Covid Vaccine Criticism, To Get Jab Tomorrow

Describing EU remarks on the vaccine as "strange", Putin said: "We are not imposing anything on anyone... Whose interests are such people protecting -- of pharmaceutical companies or the interests of citizens of European countries?"

President Vladimir Putin on Monday dismissed foreign criticism of Russia's Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine and said he planned to get a jab himself this week.

The state-sponsored Russian vaccine has yet to be approved for widespread use in Western countries, despite Moscow's insistence it is safe and effective, and the slow rollouts of vaccination campaigns in Europe.

Critics in the West have raised questions about the vaccine and accused Russia of using it as a propaganda tool, but Putin called such comments "strange" and suggested lives were being put at risk.

"We are not imposing anything on anyone... Whose interests are such people protecting -- of pharmaceutical companies or the interests of citizens of European countries?" he said in a televised meeting with health officials.

After months of queries about when the 68-year-old would himself be inoculated, Putin said he planned to do so on Tuesday.

"Vaccination is of course the voluntary choice of every person... By the way, I intend to do it myself tomorrow," he said.

Russia registered Sputnik V in August, ahead of large-scale clinical trials, prompting worries among many experts over the fast-track process.

Later reviews have been largely positive, with leading medical journal The Lancet publishing results showing it safe and more than 90 percent effective.

EMA experts to visit


"Despite the deliberate discrediting of our vaccine, more and more countries are showing interest in it," Putin said.

Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said during the meeting that experts from the European Medicines Agency will travel to Russia on April 10 to review clinical trials conducted on the vaccine.

The Amsterdam-based EMA this month launched a rolling review of Sputnik V, a key step towards it being approved as the first non-Western coronavirus jab to be used across the 27-nation bloc.

On Sunday, EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton said Europe had "absolutely no need for Sputnik V," sparking a fierce response from Moscow.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), which backed the development of Sputnik, accused Breton of being "clearly biased" against the jab because it was Russian.

"Europeans want a choice of safe and efficient vaccines, which you so far failed to provide," the RDIF said on Twitter, adding that Sputnik V has been approved for use in 55 countries.

The vaccine dispute comes amid heightened tensions between Moscow and the West, with Europe and the United States imposing new sanctions on Russia over the poisoning and jailing of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

In a phone call with European Council President Charles Michel on Monday, Putin accused Europe of "unconstructive, often confrontational policies" in relations with Moscow.

With EU leaders meeting for a summit in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, Putin said Moscow was ready to resume normal ties if Europe is willing, the Kremlin said.

Michel blamed Russia, saying after the call that Moscow needed to implement a peace deal with Ukraine, stop "hybrid and cyber-attacks" on EU states and respect human rights.

Vaccine scepticism


Russia's own vaccination campaign has been slower than in many countries. Only about four million of the country's 144 million people have so far received two doses of a vaccine, and another two million a first dose.

Vaccine scepticism runs high in Russia, with a poll this month showing less than a third willing to have a jab, and close to two-thirds saying they believe the coronavirus is a man-made biological weapon.

The country has been among the hardest hit by Covid-19, with more than 4.4 million cases of the coronavirus and more than 95,000 deaths.

After a strict lockdown in the spring, Russian authorities did not impose a full lockdown despite a surge in cases this winter, and have instead been gradually lifting virus-related restrictions.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Nvidia’s $5 Billion Bet on Intel Reshapes AI Hardware Landscape
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Trump’s Quip on Biden and Google Lawsuit Revives Debate Over Antitrust Legacy
Macron and his wife to provide 'scientific photographic evidence' that she is a real woman
US Tech Giants Pledge Billions to UK AI Infrastructure Following Starmer's Call
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
DeepMind and OpenAI Achieve Gold at ‘Coding Olympics’ in AI Milestone
SEC Allows Public Companies to Block Investors from Class-Action Lawsuits
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Federal Reserve Cuts Rates by Quarter Point and Signals More to Come
Effective and Impressive Generation Z Protest: Images from the Riots in Nepal
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Trump: Cancel quarterly company reports and settle for reporting once every six months
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
US Launches New Pilot Program to Accelerate eVTOL Air Taxi Deployment
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
×