Russia Says Military Officials Preparing To Leave For Service Will Get COVID Vaccine First

Russian Defence Ministry on Friday informed that Navy crews, commanders of armed forces’ units, Aerospace Forces, and combat crews of Strategic Missile Forces are first in line to receive the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine. Russian Defence Ministry spokesperson, Major General Igor Konashenkov on December 11 said that about 1,00,000 servicemen will be vaccinated before the end of 2020.  The vaccination drive has begun across 70 stations for frontline workers aged between 18 to 60 years. Children, people with underlying health conditions, pregnant and breastfeeding women have been left out of the vaccination campaign due to a lack of data regarding the effects of COVID-19 vaccines in these groups. Sputnik V is being administered in two doses with a gap of 21 days between each injection.