BNT162b2

BioNTech's boss has said he is confident the company's vaccine will be effective against the new coronavirus variant.

Ugur Sahin said, however, that more tests were needed before he could be completely sure of the efficacy of the drug.

The Pfizer/BioNTech jab is the only vaccine approved for use in the UK so far. It is also being rolled out in the US.

The European Union geared up to start mass vaccinations against Covid-19 just after Christmas after the shot developed by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech cleared regulatory hurdles on Monday.

President-elect Joe Biden on Monday received a Covid-19 vaccine in a live televised appearance, the latest figure to get the shot publicly as a way of boosting confidence in its safety and effectiveness.

The European Medicines Agency said on Dec. 21 that it had approved the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, paving the way for inoculations to start across the EU within days.    

The Amsterdam-based regulator dramatically moved the decision on the jab ahead from December 29, following pressure to accelerate the process from Germany and other EU states.    

The European Medicines Agency says an expert committee has recommended conditional approval for a coronavirus vaccine developed by BioNTech and Pfizer to be used across the European Union, weeks after the shot was first granted permission under emergency provisions in Britain and the United States.

The first doses of the vaccine made by the Pfizer and BioNtech companies will arrive in Serbia this week, Pavle Zelic, from the Serbia's Agency for Medicines, said on Monday.

As a guest on Prva TV, he thanked everyone who is working on equipping COVID hospital in Kruevac, which will be opened on Sunday.
"As far as the vaccine is concerned, I have absolute trust in Varhelyi, he is a sincere friend of Serbia and he is trying to get Serbia to receive the vaccine on time," he said.

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence received his COVID-19 vaccine live on television on Friday, seeking to shore up public support for vaccinations after U.S. deaths from the coronavirus topped 3,000 for a third straight day.

Greece will receive the first batch of coronavirus vaccines on December 26, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Friday, adding that the first vaccinations will take place at five Covid-designated hospitals in Athens and Thessaloniki.

On December 2, Pfizer and BioNTech submitted documentation for the registration of the coronavirus vaccine in Serbia, after which Medicines and Medical Devices Agency of Serbia began evaluating the documents and thoroughly studying all phases of testing, in order to confirm the efficacy and safety of the vaccine.