Oxford

- Two weeks after Hungary announced that it had reached a deal with China's Sinopharm, the first batch of Sinopharm vaccine arrived in Budapest on Feb. 16, which will enable a mass immunization of 2.5 million people.

Although the European Medicines Agency approved the AstraZeneca vaccine for use and although Germany procured 1.4 million doses of that vaccine from the British-Swedish company, only less than 190.000 doses were used, which is about 13 percent. However, the German chancellor finally "sealed" vaccine's destiny.

Romania is ranking second in the European Union and sixth in the world in terms of administering the second and last dose of the COVID-19 vaccine reported per 100 people, according to Chairman of the National COVID-19 Vaccination Coordination Committee (CNCAV) Valeriu Gheorghita.

During the weekend, from Friday afternoon to Sunday evening, 1,950 patients were vaccinated with AstraZeneca in Pirogov emergency hospital," Prof. Asen Baltov, director of the medical institution, said at a briefing. By comparison, he pointed out that 4,200 were vaccinated from December 27 to this weekend, with 1,250 with a second dose.

North Korea attempted to steal Covid-19 vaccine technology from US pharmaceutical company Pfizer, according to South Korean intelligence officials.

It is currently unclear as to what, if any, data was stolen.

South Korea's National Intelligence Agency privately briefed lawmakers about the alleged attack, reported local news agency Yonhap.

The World Health Organization gave emergency use approval to AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccines on Feb. 15, meaning distribution can start to poorer countries starved of doses to fight the pandemic.

Britain's coronavirus vaccination program has covered all its main target groups of vulnerable people, it said on Feb. 14, hours after New Zealand, so far largely spared by the pandemic, put its largest city into lockdown.

The AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine can be used for people aged over 65, and also where coronavirus variants of concern are circulating, WHO experts said on Feb. 10, soothing fears about the jab.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has admitted the EU was late to authorise Covid-19 vaccines and "we're still not where we want to be".

She also acknowledged the EU had been overconfident about production targets being met amid delays at factories.

Mrs von der Leyen has come under fire for the EU's slow vaccine rollout.

Bulgaria will order over 3 million additional doses of RNA vaccines. This was announced by Minister of Health Kostadin Angelov in the framework of today's government meeting. To this end, the government allocates extra BGN 9 million.