Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine production to start in Turkey

The production of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine in Turkey will start in the coming weeks, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) said on Monday.

The production will be organized at the plants of the Turkish pharmaceutical company Viscoran Ilac, the RDIF said in a statement.

“RDIF and the Turkish pharmaceutical company Viscoran Ilac announced cooperation for the production of the world’s first registered vaccine against the coronavirus Sputnik V in the country.

“Viscoran Ilac has made preparations for the localization of production and plans to start production of Sputnik V in the coming months at several enterprises,” the statement said.

The RDIF added it is finalizing the transfer of production technology with another Turkish company — CinnaGen Ilac, and is negotiating with two more “production platforms” aiming to expand the capacity of Sputnik V production.

The RDIF added that the vaccine produced in Turkey is intended both for local use and export to third countries.

On April 22, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca announced Turkey will begin administering Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine soon.

AA