President Vladimir Putin said on Monday that Russia and other countries, including European ones, should join in their efforts in the battle against the coronavirus pandemic.
"We should join our efforts with our European colleagues. We are trying to do this - and we are ready for cooperation", Putin stated.
A healthcare worker prepares a dose of Russia's coronavirus vaccine Gam-COVID-Vac, trade-named Sputnik V, at a coronavirus vaccination center at a shopping mall, in Moscow, Russia.
© Sputnik / Vitaly Belousov
/ The Russian president pointed out that the Gamaleya Research Institute, which developed the Sputnik V vaccine, is now cooperating with AstraZeneca, saying that Russia and European countries should work on vaccines together.
The Russian authorities have approved three domestic vaccines - Sputnik V, which became the first coronavirus vaccine in the world back in August 2020, EpiVacCorona, developed by Vector, and the newly-registered CoviVac medication.
During the first six months of 2021, Russia plans to produce over 88 million doses of vaccine to curb the pandemic.
