COVID-19 vaccination

The administration of US President Joe Biden, together with private companies, is working on standards for coronavirus vaccination passports.

Passports will be available through smartphone apps that can display a scanned code similar to an airline's boarding pass.

For EU citizens, a single vaccination certificate will be available by June 15.

According to EU Commissioner for Internal Market Affairs Thierry Breton, the vaccination certificate will be optional, but airlines can require passengers to have it. The certificate will indicate the name of the owner, date of birth, passport number, as well as information about whether he was vaccinated and was ill or not with COVID-19.

"The certificate will be the same everywhere. It will contain the same information about vaccination, the presence of antibodies. But if the person has not been vaccinated, then you will need to pass a PCR test. This is especially important if a person is going to make a flight to another country, "  the world media reports Breton's statement.

At the same time, against the background of a complex epidemic with coronavirus, experts do not expect a sharp increase in tourist trips in Europe in the coming summer.

The UK authorities will not allow their citizens to leave abroad until August, The Sunday Times has learned.

The new law provides for fines of up to £5,000 for those who try to leave England before June 30 without a "good reason".

Venezuela is ready to pay with oil for coronavirus vaccines.

President Nicolas Maduro has already approved a special payment scheme for the supplied drugs. This method will be used due to the fact that Venezuelan diplomats can not yet pay for vaccines with public funds, which were frozen due to the introduction of Western sanctions.

President Nicolas Maduro said on a state TV channel that all legal and judicial measures are being taken to release the funds. They will pay for about 20% of the required amount of medicines for the country's population.

According to Maduro, Venezuela has several ways to get the vaccine under the COVAX mechanism — with the help of money "stolen" from the country, or by exchanging oil for drugs.

Earlier, Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said that the country's accounts in foreign banks are about $7 bln, part of which is planned for the purchase of vaccines.

Rodriguez also added that Venezuela will not approve the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine due to reports of complications.

In November 2020, a Russian vaccine was tested in Venezuela, which was attended by 2 thousand people, including Maduro's son Guerra and his older sister Maria Teresa.

After that, the authorities of the country at the end of December 2020 agreed with the RDIF to supply 10 million doses of Sputnik V to the country. Vaccination in Venezuela with a Russian drug began on February 19. Maduro called it "a great moment that fills all Venezuelans with great joy and hope." The Venezuelan Health Ministry also approved the use of the Chinese drug Sinopharm.

170 States participate in the COVAX program.

Middle-and high-income countries (78 of them) pay for the purchase of vaccines for 92 countries that cannot afford to purchase the necessary batches of drugs themselves. Only partial payment (15%) of the vaccine is required from recipient countries. Most of the supply through this program is a drug from AstraZeneca. The countries are also supplied with a vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech.

In March, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) submitted an application for the participation of the Russian vaccine "Sputnik V" in the international COVAX program.

Russian vaccine "Sputnik V" has become the most recognizable drug for coronavirus, according to a survey by YouGov.

It turned out that 74 percent of respondents are aware of Russian vaccine. The Pfizer/BioNTech drug was in second place (69 percent of the votes), the AstraZeneca vaccine closes the top three (60 percent).