EU has 'absolutely no need' of Sputnik V vaccine, commissioner says

European Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton, the head of the EU Commission's special vaccine task force, speaks to the media in Copenhagen, Denmark, March 18, 2021. Ritzau Scanpix/Emil Helms via REUTERS

PARIS (Reuters) -The European Union does not need Russia's Sputnik V vaccine for COVID-19 and can achieve immunity across the continent using European production, a leading EU executive said on Sunday in comments that provoked a backlash from the vaccine maker.

The European Commission has been criticised for a slow vaccine rollout when the bloc faces a rise in cases and as former member Britain's inoculation programme gathers pace.