A syringe containing a dose of Sputnik V vaccine. — AFP/VNA Photo

HÀ NỘI — Russia gave Việt Nam 1,000 doses of its COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V as a gift on Tuesday morning, according to an announcement from the health ministry.

The doses were brought to Việt Nam as the Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Nikolai Patrushev arrived in Hà Nội this morning for an official two-day visit to the country.

Đặng Việt Hùng, head of the department for international co-operation under the health ministry, said the ministry received the batch at Nội Bài International Airport and the doses have been transported to be stored in the cold storage of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology.

The use of the first Russian doses to be available in Việt Nam will be decided by the Government, Hùng noted.

Sputnik V was the first COVID-19 vaccine in the world to be approved last year, and since August, the Russian health ministry has conducted a nationwide vaccination campaign using the vaccine before the completion of phase 3 human trials.

To date, with more trial data available indicating more than 90 per cent protection against coronavirus, more than 50 countries have approved the emergency use of Sputnik V, including Việt Nam.

Earlier in February, health minister Nguyễn Thanh Long said Sputnik V’s manufacturer could supply some 60 million doses to Việt Nam, to add to its arsenal of 60 million doses of Oxford/AstraZeneca (30 million from direct deals with the manufacturer, and 30 million from the COVAX initiative) for this year. — VNS