Human Resources Minister Miklós Kásler said the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) approval of the Sinopharm vaccine “vindicates” the Hungarian government’s vaccination policy.
“Hungary’s vaccination policy has been driven exclusively by healthcare considerations; political or economic considerations have not played any role,” he said on Facebook. The national vaccination program has allowed a gradual reopening of the country, he said.
Meanwhile, 1.2 million doses of Sinopharm vaccine arrived in Hungary from China on Saturday. “This is the biggest shipment of vaccines so far,” Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said, adding that Hungary has now received 3.3 million doses altogether. Another 1.7 million doses of the Sinopharm jab are under contract to be delivered in the future, too.
Minister Szijjártó said “the next milestone” was the target of five million vaccinated in Hungary, “bringing us closer to a life of normalcy”. “We are in a position to vaccinate anyone who needs it,” he said.