영국, 아스트라제네카 백신 최초승인…"한국도 1천만명분 구입"br br The vaccine jointly developed by U.K. pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca and Oxford University has been approved for use in Britain,... with the first doses expected to be administered next Monday.br Following the news,... other countries are looking to approve its use as well.br Lee Seung-jae reports.br After becoming the first country in the world to approve the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine,... the U.K. has become the first country to approve the use of AstraZeneca's vaccine.br The U.K.'s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has authorized two full doses of the vaccine,... with the second dose to be administered four to twelve weeks after the first.br 530-thousand doses will be available in the U.K. from next Monday,... and priority will be given to care home residents,... those over 80-years-old and health and care workers.br Argentina on Wednesday also approved the AstraZeneca vaccine.br Argentina struck a deal with the U.K. drugmaker in November to receive 22 million doses.br Germany's top vaccines official expects the European Union to give rapid approval to AstraZeneca's vaccine.br While no formal application has been received by the European Medicines Agency,... it is expected to be filed soon.br Berlin's support for the U.K. vaccine comes as EU member countries seek to fill supply chains for vaccination campaigns that began last weekend using Pfizer's vaccine.br While Germany has so far administered 78-thousand shots,... there have been reports of setbacks with some vaccination centers shutting down temporarily due to a lack of supplies.br AstraZeneca's vaccine which was collaborated on with Oxford University is reported to be up to 80-percent effective when given three months apart.br The vaccine is also easier to store at regular refrigerator temperature,... and more affordable than other options.br South Korea has a deal in place with the U.K. drugmaker to receive enough vaccines for 10 million people.br Lee Seung-jae, Arirang News.