Russia plans to begin the first mass deliveries of its coronavirus vaccine in September, Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said on Monday.
“First deliveries in large quantities will begin in September,” Murashko was quoted as saying by the state-run TASS news agency.
Russia has registered the Sputnik V adenoviral vector-based vaccine and is touting it as the world’s first.
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Russia is one of several countries racing to develop a proven vaccine against the disease that has infected 25.4 million and killed more than 850,000 people worldwide.
A mass vaccination campaign will begin among Russian volunteers in October, a month after industrial production is expected to launch.
Sputnik V is expected to enter civilian circulation on January 1, 2021, according to a registration certificate on the Russian Health Ministry’s website.
