Since November, only those vaccinated with coronavirus vaccines approved by the World Health Organization or the country’s authorities will be able to enter the United States.
These categories include vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna, as well as Chinese drugs Sinopharm and Sinovac. Russian vaccines, including Sputnik V, do not belong to any of these categories.
Such a move by the United States is “another blow to the manufacturers of Sputnik V, which Moscow is proud to proclaim as the first registered coronavirus vaccine.” The Russian vaccine was conceived as a “powerful tool for pandemic diplomacy,” but its limited distribution abroad and slow delivery rates left it behind not only Western but also Chinese drugs.