Hungary became the first EU country to approve a Chinese vaccine on January 29, when it officially approved the use of the new crown pneumonia (CCPV) vaccine developed by China’s Sinopharm Group (Sinopharm). Previously, Hungary was also the first EU country to purchase the Russian satellite 5 vaccine (Sputnik V).
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in an interview earlier in the day that an agreement on the purchase of the Chinese vaccine could be finalized soon. He claimed that he would choose Chinese vaccines because he trusts them the most. Orban also said that the Hungarian government is also closely following the mass vaccination in neighboring Serbia. On the evening of the 18th of this month, the Serbian Agency for Drugs and Medical Devices approved the use of the new crown vaccine produced by China National Pharmaceutical Group. As of the 20th, more than 430,000 people had registered on the Serbian New Crown vaccination appointment website.
Cecília Müller, Hungary’s chief medical officer, said at a briefing on the same day that the decision was made after the government issued a decree. The decree allows automatic approval of vaccines already used abroad for at least 1 million people. China has been heavily marketing two new crown vaccines developed by the Chinese side, produced by China National Pharmaceutical Group and Beijing Kexing Biological Company (SinoVac). Millions of doses of the vaccines produced by these two companies are being shipped to developing countries around the world, especially for export to Asia and Latin America.
EU countries, which have so far relied almost exclusively on Pfizer’s New Crown vaccine, also lag far behind the UK, the US and some developing countries in terms of vaccination. As mentioned above, Hungary also approved the Russian satellite 5 vaccine earlier. Hungary has ordered the vaccine for one million people, a number equivalent to slightly more than one-tenth of its population.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said the vaccine imported from China National Pharmaceutical Group is enough to vaccinate 2.5 million people, about a quarter of the country’s population, and is expected to be delivered in four batches over the next four months. But the Hungarian Medical Association (MOK) warned that the government should continue to “follow the rules of drug safety in a transparent manner and only approve products for marketing after a review that respects the rules of the European Medicines Agency.
Asked whether the Chinese vaccine was approved after the appropriate studies had been completed, the Hungarian National Institute of Pharmacy and Nutrition (OGYEI) responded that the decision was made because the vaccine met the conditions of the government decree and that the agency would continue to follow up on the vaccine. The Hungarian National Public health Center will also test each batch of the vaccine, OGYEI added, adding that 16 million people worldwide have been safely vaccinated with China National Pharmaceutical Group’s New Crown vaccine.
It is understood that in Hungary, which has a population of nearly 10 million, 364,909 people have been infected with New Crown lung and 123,374 have died so far. The Hungarian government has extended restrictions until March 1, including an 8 p.m. curfew.
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