Philippines to prioritise coronavirus vaccine supply from Russia or China

MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte vowed on Monday to prioritise buying COVID-19 vaccine to be made available by Russia or China, while taking a swipe at pharmaceutical firms of western nations asking for advance payment for their offers. Duterte has expressed optimism that the Southeast Asian country, which has recorded the region’s highest number of coronavirus cases at nearly 266,000, would be “back to normal” by December, pinning his hopes on the availability of vaccines. “We will give preference to Russia and China provided that their vaccine is as good as any other in the market,” he said…