A delivery of 100,000 doses of Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine arrived in Hungary late on Monday. Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said the vaccine was taken to the National Public Health Center, noting that the authority has approved its distribution.
“Speed is of the essence … as advancing the inoculation plan by a single day would save the lives of 100-150 people,” he said. Further, the infection of some 2,000 people would be prevented while the loss to the Hungarian economy of HUF 10-15 billion (EUR 27.8-41.8m) would also be spared, he added. “We are working to ensure that all approved vaccines arrive in Hungary as fast as possible,” he said.
Minister Szijjártó announced on Jan. 22 that Hungary had procured two million doses of Sputnik V, enough for the full inoculation of one million people.