Russia on Tuesday announced that it has developed the world’s first  coronavirus vaccine. Although Russia hailed the development as a mark of its scientific prowess, it has led to skepticism in other parts of the world, especially regarding the speed at which regulatory approval has been granted, AFP reported. 

President Vladimir Putin said that the vaccine was safe and that his daughters had received the inoculation. It has been dubbed as ‘Sputnik V‘, after Soviet satellite Sputnik — the first satellite to be launched in the world.

“I know that it is quite effective, that it gives sustainable immunity,” Putin said. Sputnik V is developed by the Gamaleya research institute in coordination with Moscow’s defence ministry.

Despite the regulatory approval, it has to complete the trials. It’ll enter the Phase III trials on Wednesday. 

Western scientists have previously raised concerns about the speed of development of Russian vaccines, suggesting that researchers might be cutting corners.

World Health Organization‘s spokesman in Geneva Tarik Jasarevic said on Tuesday that it was in “close contact” with Russian health authorities but that it was too soon for any WHO stamp of approval, AFP reported. 

“Pre-qualification of any vaccine includes the rigorous review and assessment of all the required safety and efficacy data,” he said.

The German health ministry has also expressed skepticism. In Berlin, a spokesman for the German health ministry told newspaper group RND that “there is no known data on the quality, efficacy and safety of the Russian vaccine,” adding that “patient safety is of the highest priority.”

Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian sovereign wealth fund that helped develop the vaccine, said the doubts about the vaccines were part of “coordinated and carefully orchestrated media attacks” designed to “discredit” the country. 

He said that 20 countries have pre-ordered over a billion doses of Sputnik V. 

Industrial production of the vaccine is expected to begin in September and the country will start vaccinating medical staff immediately thereafter.