ANKARA, April 19. /TASS/. Turkey has approved the production of Russia's Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, the Yeni Safak newspaper reported on Monday, citing member of the Coronavirus Scientific Advisory Board Afsin Emre Kayipmaz.

"Turkey carried out vaccine production research and a company involved in the process was granted permission upon request," the newspaper quoted the expert as saying.

According to Kayipmaz, a Sputnik V vaccine dose will cost about $10, which is similar to the price tag of China’s Sinovac. "Although prices are similar, domestic production will eliminate external dependence," he said.

On January 23, a Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) spokesperson told TASS that agreements had been reached with a leading Turkish pharmaceutical company on Sputnik V vaccine production in Turkey and the technology transfer process had begun. On January 25, Chairman of the Board of Turkey’s VisCoran Ilac Sanayii A. S. Ozturk Oran said in an interview with the Demiroren news agency that the company was ready to manufacturer millions of doses of the Russian vaccine after the technology transfer process was completed.

The Sputnik V vaccine has already been approved in about 60 countries with a total population of over 1.5 bln. More than 30 countries have launched Sputnik V vaccination campaigns. The vaccine’s effectiveness was reported at 91.6%, according to the Lancet medical journal.