Announcing the world’s first regulatory approval this week, President Vladimir Putin sought to repeat the propaganda masterstroke. Russia has been in a hurry to win the vaccine race from the start, spotting the political benefit of being first with the inoculation the world is waiting for. There is also the fact that a national regulator’s OK doesn’t win you the global vaccine race. Much will depend on what happens next, beginning with the promised publication of data on the vaccine in a major international journal. Tripping up in the vaccine race will be costlier.

Source: The Edge Markets August 14, 2020 07:52 UTC