RUSSIALINK: “Russian MP calls potential U.S. decision to close door on foreigners vaccinated with Sputnik V discriminatory” – Interfax

MOSCOW. Sept 28 (Interfax) – Chairman of the seventh State Duma’s Foreign Affairs Committee Leonid Slutsky has described as discriminatory a decision which the U.S. media say is being prepared in the United States to deny entry for foreigners immunized with the Russian Covid-19 vaccine Sputnik V.

“Thus, the U.S. will blatantly embark on a path of ‘vaccine discrimination.’ There are absolutely no grounds for such decisions. The efficacy and safety of the Sputnik V vaccine have been confirmed not only by specialists, but also by its use in practice,” Slutsky said on Telegram on Monday.

He cited an article in The Washington Post saying that from November the U.S. may begin denying entry to foreigners vaccinated with Sputnik V. Slutsky also said, citing the newspaper, that if such additional border measures are adopted, foreigners seeking entry to the U.S. will have to be immunized with vaccines approved for use either by the U.S. authorities or the World Health Organization (WHO).

Furthermore, there are “obvious attempts” to hamper the Sputnik V vaccine’s approval by the WHO, Slutsky said, adding that political speculation on this score is also continuing.

According to an article published in The Washington Post, for the first time since the pandemic began, the U.S. intends to loosen entry restrictions for foreigners vaccinated against Covid-19. However, the new rules, which enter into force in November, will not apply to Russians vaccinated with Sputnik V and citizens of other countries which are using this Russian vaccine. Under the new rules, foreigners will be let into the U.S. only if they are immunized with vaccines approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or the WHO. However, Sputnik V is yet to be approved by the WHO and is not recognized by the U.S.

[article also appeared at interfax.com/newsroom/top-stories/72766/]