On March 1, Slovakian Prime Minister Igor Matovic went ahead with the purchase of 2 million doses of the Russian-made Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine, following in the footsteps of nearby Hungary. The decision, which came after weeks of gradually worsening case numbers, sidelined the European Union’s vaccine approval process and ignored the protests of two smaller parties, leaving Matovic’s government hanging by a thread.
Recently, the Slovakian government has visibly struggled to bring the coronavirus under control. With a population of just 5.5 million people, the country now records more than 2,000 new cases and around 100 deaths every day. That translates into more coronavirus-related deaths per capita than in any other country except the neighboring Czech Republic—more than four times as many as in the United States and more than seven times as many as in Germany. Slovakian hospitals are overstretched, and local media report they are rationing ventilators to prioritize younger patients.
