MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th September, 2021) Islamabad seeks to purchase more than 5 million doses of Russia's COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V, Pakistani Ambassador to Russia Shafqat Ali Khan said in an interview with Sputnik, noting that the talks to localize the vaccine's production are also underway.
Back in April, Pakistani Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi already expressed his country's readiness to purchase 5 million doses of the Russian vaccine, as well as to discuss potential local production.
"I think that, at one level, the Sputnik V has become a victim of its success. I'll tell you how: it was so successful that every country wants to buy it. So we were in a queue and the number which we ultimately plan to buy is more than five million. There are discussions going on," Khan said.
The diplomat recalled that the Pakistani Embassy in Moscow was one of the first foreign diplomatic missions to get vaccinated with Sputnik V, adding that "it works very well."
When asked about the exact figures, the ambassador said he did not know the details, as the countries' health authorities were directly negotiating the matter.
"The good news I can share with you, I think yesterday or the day before yesterday, the first one million Sputnik V vaccines arrived in Pakistan. They have landed in Pakistan. There are more going to come," Khan said, noting that it was the biggest batch that arrived in the country.
Apart from receiving the Russian vaccine, the Pakistani side is also interested in producing the drug at its plants, the diplomat said.
"Some discussions [on Sputnik V production in Pakistan] are going on. But our priority right now was procurement because production takes time, the licensing, the quality control and everything. But we are very happy. This is another layer of cooperation," he noted.
With the orders starting to arrive in Pakistan, the government can be more focused on local production, Khan said.
