When Russian regulators approved the country’s own COVID-19 vaccine, it was a moment of national pride, and the Pavlov family was among those who rushed to take the injection.
However, international health authorities have not yet given their blessing to the Sputnik V shot.
So when the family from Rostov-on-Don wanted to visit the West, they looked for a vaccine that would allow them to travel freely — a quest that brought them to Serbia, where hundreds of Russian citizens have flocked in the past few weeks to receive Western-approved COVID-19 shots.
Serbia, which is not a member of the EU, is