Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
Today, the European Commission in Brussels authorized the use of the modified Comirnaty XBB.1.5 COVID-19 vaccine, developed by BioNTech-Pfizer. This vaccine represents another important milestone in the fight against the disease. This is the third adaptation of this vaccine to respond to new variants of COVID-19.
The vaccine is approved for adults, children, and infants over 6 months old. In line with previous recommendations from the European Medicines Agency and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), adults and children from 5 years of age who need to be vaccinated should receive a single dose, regardless of their COVID-19 vaccination history.
This authorization comes after a rigorous evaluation by the European Medicines Agency, under the accelerated evaluation mechanism. The commission authorized this modified vaccine under an accelerated procedure to allow member states to prepare in time for vaccination campaigns in the fall and winter.

According to a statement issued by the Commission's headquarters and distributed in Brussels, through the EU's Vaccine Strategy, the Commission continues to ensure that member states have access to the latest authorized COVID-19 vaccines in the quantities needed to protect vulnerable groups of their populations and deal with the epidemiological evolution of the virus.

In line with the ECDC-EMA Statement on Composition Update for COVID-19 Vaccines for Novel SARS-CoV-2 Virus Variants, BioNTech-Pfizer has adapted its COVID-19 vaccine to target the SARS-CoV-2 strain Omicron XBB.1.5. The modified vaccine is also expected to increase the breadth of immunity against existing dominant and emerging variants.

The contract amendment with BioNTech-Pfizer signed in May 2023 ensures that member states will continue to have access to vaccines adapted to new variants of COVID-19 in the coming years.