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AUTHOR:
DATE AND TIME:
23.02.2021. 00:18
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said today that countries must purchase as many vaccines as possible and as many as possible, regardless of whether they come from the East or the West.
Viktor Orban, Photo: Tanjug / Presidency of Serbia
In an interview for the German portal Focus Online on the occasion of Hungary’s decision to buy the Russian vaccine Sputnik V, he said that in a pandemic, it is the job of politicians to take responsibility and protect the health and lives of citizens.
“Because those who buy time can save lives and regain their freedom,” he said.
He emphasized that there are no “eastern or western vaccines,” but only good or bad, reports the MTI.
Orban said vaccine procurement and strained relations between the EU and Russia can be seen as separate issues.
He stressed that human life and protection are beyond political considerations.
Orban added that it is “irresponsible” to politicize the purchase of vaccines and “allow people to die and restrict their freedom just because someone has objections to a country where it is produced.”
“Objectively speaking, it is clear that the eastern part of Europe developed a culture of vaccination during the communist era, which led to the eradication of the virus in Eastern Europe much earlier in Western Europe, where the Russian vaccine was not accepted for ideological reasons, Orban said.
Regarding the centralized vaccine procurement program in the EU, Orban said it was clear that it was the wrong decision.
The United States, Britain, Israel and even Serbia “are far ahead of the EU member states ahead of us,” Orban said, adding that it is now too late to change that course.
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