Is it true that the "satellite V" vaccine was created on the basis of the Astrazeneca formula stolen by spies?

On October 10, 2021, the British tabloid The Sun reported that the spies got information about the production of the Astrazeneca vaccine and transferred it to Russia. We checked what arguments the Sun introduced.

According to the tabloid, British secret services Reported The ministers who have data on the activities of “one of the spies of Vladimir Putin”, which “personally” stole important data on the production of the Astrazeneca vaccine. The publication emphasizes that both this vaccine and the satellite V are produced using similar technology - accordingly, according to intelligence, the Russian drug has become just a copy of the British. The Sun message in their publications was also retold by other British media: The Independent, Metro, Daily Mail and others.

Despite loud statements and accusations, there is no specificity in the publication of The Sun. There are no details in the text about the “Spy of Vladimir Putin”: what is his name and how old he is, what kind of special service he imagined how he could gain access to the formula, how he could transfer it to the developers of “satellite V”. There are also no minimum details about the crime itself, when and how exactly it happened. Sources that The Sun referred to are anonymous and did not represent their finds publicly. It is also significant that the world's largest media (including the main British media - BBC) ignored this news, in contrast, for example, from accusations of a hacker attack on research centers in the UK, the USA and Canada last July last year.

The message in the British tabloid has already reacted in Russia. On the official website of the satellite V vaccine was published The press release, in which the charges expressed in The Sun are called "another fake news and impudent lies based on anonymous sources." Manufacturers of the "satellite V" pay attention to the fact that the vaccines, although they relate to adenovirus, are designed on the basis of different adenoviruses. In addition, the Russian drug was based on studies related to the Ebola vaccine against the fever, which were carried out back in 2017. Moreover, in December, manufacturers of both vaccinations Concluded Combined vaccine development agreement, now the drug passes Tests in the context of which theft of the formula looks illogical.

Spokesman for Russian president Dmitry Peskov in his commentary He called it The Sun is a “very famous, deeply unscientific newspaper”. In a sense, sand is right: despite the popularity of the tabloid, it is difficult to attribute to authoritative sources-the publication Caught on the publication of false information and They accused In the application of illegal data collection methods. We have repeatedly checked the fully or partially incorrect publications of this tabloid. 500-year-old shark, French Prohibition call a pig Napoleon, Prohibition To photograph the Eiffel Tower at night, etc.

So far, The Sun has not submitted a single specific evidence that Russian spies stole the formula of the Astrazeneca vaccine and handed it over to the developers of the “satellite V”. The dubious reputation of the publication, and the lack of similar messages in many world media, and the joint work of two research groups on a combined vaccine, interfere with the non -supported evidence.

Most likely not true

What do our verdicts mean?

Read on the topic:

1. The Sun. Sputnicked. Russian Spies ‘Stole Formula for Oxford/Astra Zeneca Covid Jab and Used to Create Sputnik Vaccine’
2. Sputnik v Team Statement on Fake News in uk media
3. BBC. Coronavirus: Russian Spies Target Covid-19 Vaccine Research