Antonio Guterres
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres spoke in an interview with TASS about the importance of the Russian vaccine against the coronavirus Sputnik V.
He stressed that the Russian vaccine is a very generous offer for the UN. According to the Secretary General, “Sputnik V” can be used in UN missions in the most vulnerable areas where peacekeeping operations are conducted. Guterres hopes the drug will play an important role in this area.
At the same time, the Secretary General recalled that for the use of “Sputnik V” by the United Nations, the vaccine must be approved by the World Health Organization (WHO). “I know that at the moment there are contacts between the Russian authorities and the WHO. I hope the vaccine will be recognized or certified by the WHO as soon as possible, ”Guterres said.
So far 12 countries have approved the use of the Sputnik V vaccine on their territory. Among them are Belarus, Argentina, Bolivia, Serbia, Algeria, Palestine, Venezuela, Paraguay, Turkmenistan, UAE, Hungary and Pakistan.
During a speech at the UN General Assembly session in September, Russian President Vladimir Putin offered the organization's employees a Russian vaccine against coronavirus free of charge. The Russian leader said that Moscow received similar appeals from colleagues from the UN and could not remain indifferent to them.
