The first phase of vaccination against coronavirus with AstraZeneca, a Romanian production, started today, March 1, in the Republic of Moldova
The press secretary of the president of Moldova, Sorina Stefirza, told foreign media that the Russian vaccine Sputnik V, which was authorized in Moldova the day before, cannot be used because of WHO disapproval.
An MP of the Party of Socialists (PSRM) Vladimir Odnostalko called a direct lie the statement of the representative of the administration of the head of state Maia Sandu. He noted that the WHO has long allowed the use of the Russian drug, which has proved its efficiency and safety compared to the European counterparts. To confirm his words, he cited an official document of the agency with a list of allowed vaccines.
“The official report of the Moldovan Agency for Medicines and Medical Devices, along with information on the registration of the vaccine Sputnik V, also contains a reference to the WHO list of vaccines, in which it is number 9”, – stressed Vladimir Odnostalko.
He regretted that the head of state and her team, having failed to prevent the registration of Sputnik V at the regulatory level of the country, continued lying to the citizens.
The fact that pro-European authorities in Moldova are blocking access to the Russian drug to the region was also mentioned by the PSRM leader, former president Igor Dodon, whose personal efforts led to an agreement on the delivery. According to him, some of Maia Sandu’s advisers put pressure on state institutions not to register Sputnik V.
“Don’t play with this. It’s people’s health. The RF filed the documents a long time ago and you are exercising pressure for the vaccine not to be registered”, – Dodon warned.
As a result, Moldova became the 38th country in the world to officially confirm on February 26 that it was ready to receive Sputnik-V, which would arrive tentatively by the end of next week. The information was confirmed by the Agency for Medicines and Medical Devices (ALSMI), noting that previously Pfizer / BioNTech and AstraZeneca vaccines had also been approved.
“I trust only the Russian vaccine, and if it were possible, I would only vaccinate with the Russian Sputnik V”, – Igor Dodon said, stressing that people should be able to choose which vaccine to use.
For her part, the Moldovan leader today also promises that the priority for the authorities is to preserve the life and health of the citizens. According to her, Moldova is now approaching a critical threshold beyond which the medical system will find it difficult to cope with the consequences of the pandemic. According to the Health Ministry, 597 new cases of coronavirus infection have been detected in the country in the last 24 hours. Vaccination, as international experience shows, is the most effective way to stop the spread of the disease and save lives.
“For me as President, people’s health and lives come first, and there is no place for politics or geopolitics. I will be guided solely by the interests of our citizens. And the interest of our citizens is to vaccinate as many people as possible, regardless of whether the vaccine comes from the West or from the East”, – Maia Sandu concluded.
Let us remind that, until now, Moldova remained the only country in Europe where vaccination against Covid-19 has not been launched. The President explained this state of affairs by the fact that the arrival of the European medication in Moldova was delayed because the producers Pfizer, Moderna and COVAX did not trust the Moldovan authorities and therefore did not dare to sign contracts with Chisinau.
“These vaccine producers have complaints against the Moldovan justice system in general, they are thinking how not to get sued if someone demands damages from them”, – Maia Sandu claimed.
As EADaily wrote, on 27 February, an SMURD service plane carrying 21,600 doses of AstraZeneca anticoviral vaccine from Bucharest was received in Chisinau. The first to receive it are medical workers, covid hospital staff, as well as people staying in shelters and centres of temporary and long-term placement. The procedure will take around two months. Afterwards, vaccination will be given to chronically ill and elderly people. For this purpose, 330 specialized centres will be opened. In the third stage, the rest of the population will receive the vaccine. In this case there will be a total of almost 1400 booths all over the country.
At the end of December 2020, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis promised Moldova 200 thousand doses of AstraZeneca. A certain amount of this European humanitarian cargo will also go to Transnistria, which is part of the overall vaccination plan for Moldova.