Belarus will become the first country to receive the Sputnik V Russian vaccine against the coronavirus, the press service for President Lukashenko announced citing his phone conversation with President Putin.
"The two presidents agreed that Belarus citizens will voluntarily take part in phase III trials of the vaccine. Belarus will thus become the first nation to import the Russian vaccine", the press service said.
Russia's Sputnik V Vaccine
21 August 2020, 16:07 GMT
The Sputnik V is the first vaccine against the coronavirus in the world. Developed by the Moscow-based Gamaleya Research Institute and the Russian Defence Ministry, the vaccine was officially registered by the Russian government on 11 August. The phase III trial of the vaccine, involving around 2,000 people, is currently underway.
The Russian Ministry of Health has said that Sputnik V has undergone all the necessary checks and has been proven to be capable of building immunity against the virus.
According to the Russian Direct Investment Fund, it has received applications from more than 20 countries for the purchase of around one billion doses of the vaccine. Russia has contracted the vaccine's production to five countries, with the expected capacity to produce 500 million doses per year.
