RIYADH — The temporary suspension of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine in some countries is expected and applies to all vaccines and medicines, Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health for Preventive Health Dr. Abdullah Asiri said.

As to the contrived din about the vaccine, Dr. Asiri explained that people would understand, “if we know that it (the noise) is taking place due to four advantages that distinguish the vaccine — most notable among them is that it is non-profitable and it is quite effective on the ground. The real advantages are greater than what has been shown in clinical studies.

In a tweet on his Twitter account, Dr. Asiri further said that Austria and South Korea have resumed vaccination with the Oxford vaccine after a partial suspension of specific operations.

There has also been a suspension of one of the Moderna vaccination operations in the US and then inoculation resumed, indicating that there are no significant differences in the side-effects between COVID vaccines, and the suspension of some operations is a usual matter. It is expected and applied to all vaccines and medicines.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Tawfiq Al Rabiah confirmed that all vaccines used in the Kingdom have shown high protection from infection two weeks after taking the vaccine, accompanied by a high degree of safety.