ISTANBUL (Reuters) -Turkey has signed a deal for 50 million doses of Russia’s Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine which will start arriving next month, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Wednesday.
“We are at the last stage for Sputnik V vaccine emergency use authorisation and made a deal for its procurement. Turkey signed a deal to receive 50 million doses within six months,” Koca said in a televised speech.
Turkey has until now been using COVID-19 vaccines developed by China’s Sinovac Biotech Ltd and Pfizer and BioNTech. It has carried out 22 million inoculations, with 13.55 million people having received a first dose.
On Monday, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) said a Turkish pharmaceutical firms will produce Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine at its plants.
(Reporting by Ezgi Erkoyun; Editing by Dominic Evans)
