Ecuador Eyeing Agreement On Supply Of Russia's Sputnik V COVID-19 Vaccine - President

BUENOS AIRES (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th May, 2021) Ecuador intends to sign an agreement on the supply of the Russian-made Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine, President-elect Guillermo Lasso said on Wednesday.

"Vaccination is a priority. We are going to sign an agreement on the supply of Sputnik V vaccine with Russia to strengthen our [vaccination] plan. We thank the Russian authorities for their willingness and openness," Lasso tweeted.

In late April, days after his victory in the election, the new president asked the leaders of Russia, China and the United States for assistance in combating the COVID-19 pandemic and getting the Ecuadorian population vaccinated.

About 200,000 people in the South American country have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, while Lasso has promised to vaccinate nine million people in his first hundred days in office. Notably, he is scheduled to be inaugurated on May 24.

Ecuador has reached agreements on vaccine deliveries with Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and Sinovac, as well as through the Covax international mechanism.

Sputnik V, the world's first registered coronavirus vaccine, has been approved for emergency use in 64 countries across the globe. The efficacy of the vaccine stands at 97.6%, based on the latest analysis of data on the post-vaccination infection percentage among 3.8 million vaccinated Russians. It is higher than the 91.6% efficacy shown in an interim analysis from the trial published in The Lancet in early February.