Finally, a vaccine has arrived, though from unlikely quarters. This time it is from Vladimir Putin’s fortress known as Russia, reputed more for its military hardware, oil and past space feats under the erstwhile USSR, and less with any major scientific breakthrough. As the adage goes, ‘where there’s a will, there’s a way.’ Putin, the evergreen dictator has an abundance of it, as he has demonstrated time and again, be it in dealing with terrorists at home or neutralizing and eliminating his political rivals.
The process of development of a vaccine was rushed through for sure and several normal procedures could have been bypassed in the mad race for success. Two aspects must be noted. One, this is the world’s first authentic vaccine to treat Covid-19, the pandemic that took the world by storm in the past few months and killed millions of people worldwide and larger numbers in the world’s most advanced nations like the US, UK, Italy etc. Putin and Russia can rightly take the full credit for this breakthrough the world waited with bated breath for and is welcoming with awe.
The second aspect to note is about the vaccine’s authenticity. Putin’s team has had this administered on his daughter; another bold act, which also signifies his confidence about the safety of the prescription. Would any other world or regional or local leader have shown such courage and made guinea pigs of their own children is a big question; and the answer is obvious.
In keeping with Russia’s past, and its record in space explorations – a field in which the USSR had made a big name in the past – the vaccine is named after Sputnik. It offers sustainable immunity, as Putin has announced to the world on Tuesday. The dictator has kept his word on the vaccine. He had stated a week ago that a vaccine was getting ready in a short while. He has also stated that his daughter had taken part in the experiment and that he is sure about its success. Millions of doses are to be produced in a jiffy, a time when the world would require much, much more of this. And, appreciably, other vaccines too are on the way, as similar trials are on, under WHO supervision in labs across the world; the US, Israel and India too being the leading figures among them.
Notably, Putin’s Russia has also stolen a march over Donald Trump’s America and Xi Jinping’s China by announcing and introducing the world’s first vaccine against Covid-19 the virus that China’s contributed to the world. This indeed is Putin’s hour of triumph.