President Volodymyr Zelensky admitted that Ukraine is not on the priority list of countries first to receive an effective vaccine against COVID-19.
He said this in an interview with the Axios program on the American HBO channel.
According to Zelensky, the situation with vaccine supplies indicates that Ukraine is not an equal member of the European Union.
“The fact that Ukraine is not an equal member of the European Union or the world was confirmed by the terms of vaccinations. We are not a priority for the countries that are receiving the vaccine now like other countries are,” the Ukrainian President said.
Yet, he added that Ukraine will receive the vaccine even though it will be taken step by step, little by little.
“The countries of the European Union, the ones we have wonderful relationships with, I did approach their leaders and they would help little by little from their own supply of vaccines. This would be difficult to explain to their people, I understand. But they will little by little give some to us.”
He ended by saying that he feels very unpleasant regarding the whole situation with vaccine supply to Ukraine.
“But this is very unpleasant to feel that you are standing there with your hand out.”
According to "Apostrophe", earlier Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal announced the terms of implementation of the program, according to which half of the country's population is planned to be vaccinated by the end of 2022.