The COVID-19 vaccine, developed by the UK pharmacological company AstraZeneca in cooperation with the University of Oxford, has shown low efficacy against a new strain of coronavirus found in South Africa, Financial Times reported referring to a new study.

A randomized, double-blind study of 2,000 volunteers showed that an injection of the AstraZeneca vaccine does not appear to protect for mild to moderate disease caused by the South African strain of the virus.

However, the vaccine is effective against the so-called UK strain, according to Oxford scientists.

This vaccine is planned to be used in Armenia for vaccination of 3% of the population - first of all, high-risk groups.