OREANDA-NEWS. There is an element of politicization in the statement by European Commissioner Thierry Breton on the Russian Sputnik V vaccine, so a number of EU countries, under certain circumstances, may choose to purchase Sputnik V directly from Moscow, if the EU does not do it centrally. This opinion was expressed by Andrey Kortunov, Director General of the Russian International Affairs Council.

European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton said earlier that Europe would not need the Russian Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, as four other anti-coronavirus drugs have already been approved within the EU, which will be enough to achieve herd immunity. Earlier, he said that Sputnik V is a good vaccine, but it is necessary to establish its production in the European Union, and Russia may need help in this.

Andrei Kortunov told RIA Novosti: “I think that, first of all, it is obvious that there is an element of politicization in this statement. In general, this confirms the suspicion that the attitude towards the Russian vaccine is not entirely objective, not entirely fair. I think, if there was one more vaccine in the EU - no one would be worse from it. Such a statement, it seems to me, confirms the fears that Russia had in this regard. "

According to Kortunov, the possibility of purchasing Sputnik V directly from Moscow by some EU countries will also depend on how alternative vaccines show themselves, since it is known that the use of some vaccines in a number of EU countries has been suspended. In particular, Italy and Germany do not exclude the possibility of independently purchasing the Russian "Sputnik V" directly from the Russian Federation.