Russia offers Sputnik V, its COVID-19 vaccine to Pakistan

With the world moving towards the first people being administered with the Novel Coronavirus vaccine, Russia has offered to supply their indigenous version of it, the Sputnik V, to Pakistan.

Although the final trial phases of the Sputnik V are still going on, President Putin authorised the distribution of the vaccine last week.

Report says that the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs received the offer from the Russian Embassy in the capital. They also sent over reports from their clinical trials which reveal that the vaccination doses have proven to be 95 percent effective. They are also considerably cheaper than the other vaccines being developed by big Pharmaceutical names like Pfizer and Moderna.

Another advantage with the Sputnik V is that it does not need to be stored at insane temperatures below freezing. The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine requires a storage temperature of 70 degrees below zero and lasts only five days in a regular refrigerator.

Pakistan has been offered the delivery of these vaccines in the beginning of 2021. The vaccine was registered in August, earlier this year and is currently being administer to the Russian troops.

Currently, Pakistan aims to get these vaccinations from a number of different places. The GAVI COVAX also plans on delivering donor-funded vaccines to middle/low-income countries. The general public of Pakistan is expected to get the vaccine at the start of Q2 next year but there have been talks of the country getting them in Q1 2021. These will, however, most likely be reserved for frontline workers and the likes. The Sputnik V, if received in the first quarter of 2021, will also most likely be administered to high-priority personnel first.