Russia to begin vaccine trials on 40K people next week, looking to partner with India

New Delhi: Russia, which is slated to start mass testing of first potential Covid-19 vaccine involving more than 40,000 people next week, is looking for a partnership with India for producing Sputnik V.

Sputnik V has been developed by the Gamaleya Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology, along with the RDIF. The vaccine has not been tested in Phase 3 or larger clinical trials.

Addressing an online press briefing, Kirill Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), said several nations are interested in the production of the vaccine from countries in Latin America, Asia and the Middle East.

"The production of the vaccine is a very important issue. Currently, we are looking for a partnership with India. We believe that they are capable of producing the Gamaleya vaccine and it is very important to say that those partnerships to produce the vaccine will enable us to cover the demand that we have," he said. Dmitriev said Russia is looking forward to international cooperation.

"We are going to do clinical trials not just in Russia but also in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, probably in Brazil and India. We are planning to produce the vaccine in more than five countries and there is a very high demand from Asia, Latin America, Italy and other parts of the world regarding the delivery of the vaccine," he said.