Some employees of the US State Department working in Russia have appealed to the Russian authorities to vaccinate them against the coronavirus with the Sputnik V vaccine. This was reported by The Washington Post with reference to sources and documents at the disposal of the publication.
At this time, the Sputnik V vaccine is not approved for use in the United States, so the State Department does not recommend that its personnel use it. At the same time, the agency leaves the employees with the right to independently make decisions concerning their health, the newspaper writes.
According to the publication, the interest of American diplomats in the Russian vaccine is explained by difficulties in obtaining vaccines from the American companies Moderna and Pfizer. The State Department has requested 315 doses of the coronavirus vaccine, but has so far received only 23% of this amount. Available doses were distributed mainly among employees in the United States, countries in Asia and Africa.
According to The Washington Post, at least 13 states have offered to vaccinate American diplomats working on their territory with Moderna and Pfizer vaccines from their own stocks. The State Department has already agreed to this and is now considering similar proposals from eight more countries.
"It's a shame that the richest country in the world asks for charity from other countries when it comes to vaccines," said an American diplomat posted to the Middle East. — Especially if you consider that the best vaccines were produced in the USA," writes The Washington Post.
