The European Union could give the green light to the COVID-19 vaccines being developed by Moderna and Pfizer/ BioNTech in December.
European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen said on Thursday that the vaccines could be approved before the end of the year, which would allow them to be distributed in Europe.
Earlier on Thursday, Ugur Sahin, the director of BioNTech, told AFP news agency it was possible its vaccine could get authorisation and be distributed in the US and EU before 2021.
“There is a chance that we can still obtain authorisation this year in the United States or in Europe or in both regions,” said Sahin.
He said a request for authorisation is going to be filed with the United States Drugs Agency (FDA) on Friday.
“We may be able to deliver vaccines in December,” he added.
This is a breaking story. Check back for updates.
