'RUSSIA WAS RIGHT'Russia approved the vaccine in August, before the large-scale trial had begun, saying it was the first country to do so for a COVID-19 shot.
It named it Sputnik V, in homage to the world's first satellite, launched by the Soviet Union.Small numbers of frontline health workers began receiving it soon after and a large-scale roll out started in December, though access was limited to those in specific professions, such as teachers, medical workers and journalists.In January, the vaccine was offered to all Russians."Russia was right all along," Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), which is responsible for marketing the vaccine abroad, told reporters ahead of the publication of the results on.