Russia to launch world's 1st COVID-19 vaccine tomorrow, President Duterte offers to take first shot

Russia's one of coronavirus vaccine candidates, developed by Gamaleya Research Institute and the Russian Defence Ministry has completed all three phases of human clinical trials successfully and will be registered on 12 August, Deputy Health Minister Oleg Gridnev said last Friday.

Russia to launch world's 1st COVID-19 vaccine tomorrow, Philippine President to take first shot

Amid the rising novel coronavirus cases and deaths across the world, Russia is all set to register its first Covid-19 or coronavirus vaccine tomorrow, triggering safety warnings from pharmaceutical companies. Russia's one of coronavirus vaccine candidates, developed by Gamaleya Research Institute and the Russian Defence Ministry has completed all three phases of human clinical trials successfully and will be registered on 12 August, Deputy Health Minister Oleg Gridnev said last Friday.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has accepted Russia’s offer of its coronavirus vaccine, volunteering to take the first shot as a gesture of trust and gratitude.

“When the vaccine arrives, I will have myself injected in public. Experiment on me first, that’s fine with me," Duterte said in a briefing on Monday night. The Philippines has 136,638 confirmed coronavirus cases, the highest in Southeast Asia.

Russia’s race to allow civilian use of a potential coronavirus vaccine before clinical trials are complete could put people at risk, according to a local association of multinational pharmaceutical companies. It was only on 13 July that the reports came out with Russia claiming that their two-part phase I trial was a success. However, Russia has not published any findings from its vaccine trials.

Health experts are worried that Russia is cutting corners and fast-tracking the process putting the people at risk. The WHO also stepped in and has urged the country to follow the established guidelines to produce a 'safe and effective vaccine'.

Russia currently has two COVID-19 vaccine candidates in the race – one, a vaccine being developed by the Vektor State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology. The second is a vaccine being produced by the Gamaleya Scientific Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology along with the Russian Defence Ministry.