Russia Reaches Out To India For Collaboration On Vaccine

By FnF Correspondent | PUBLISHED: 25, Aug 2020, 18:01 pm IST | UPDATED: 25, Aug 2020, 18:01 pm IST

Russia, which has come out with the first ever Covid-19 vaccine, has reached out to Indian officials over its Coronavirus vaccine Sputnik V, sources have said. Seeking a collaboration on the vaccine, Russia has also expressed its readiness to share detailed data with India.

As per sources Russian Ambassador to India Nikolay Kudashev has reached out to officials in Deparment of Biotechnology (DBT) and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). They also said in the meeting convened by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Russian ambassador to India was also present.

Few days ago, news agency PTI had also reported that Russia is looking for a partnership with India for producing COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V.

Kirill Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) had said that Russia was optimistically looking at about collaboration with India. Addressing an online press briefing, Dmitriev 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 was quoted as saying.

About Sputnik V

Russian President Vladimir Putin had announced that his country has developed the world’s first vaccine against COVID-19, which works “quite effectively” and forms a “stable immunity” against the disease. 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.

The Sputnik V vaccine consists of two shots that use different versions of adenoviruses — virus types, some of which cause the common cold — that the manufacturers have engineered to carry the gene for the surface protein of SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19.