SEOUL, March 9. /TASS/. The Russian Direct Investment Fund’s partners in contract manufacturing of vaccines in the Republic of Korea believe that Western sanctions against Russia will not affect their activities, a representative of GL Rapha, which heads the South Korean consortium, told TASS correspondent on Wednesday.

"Regarding the US and EU sanctions. As far as we know, there are exceptions to them, such as sanctions against Iran, and we believe that the restrictions will not affect our business," he stressed. At the same time, Kim Gi-young noted that South Korean companies are keeping a close eye on developments and news amid the rapidly changing situation.

The representative of GL Rapha noted that his company has produced and prepared about 500 million doses of Sputnik Light for shipment. Russian partners are yet to provide information on the final recipients of the shipment, he pointed out.

An agreement to produce a Russian vaccine against coronavirus in South Korea was reached back in 2020. Sputnik vaccines are being produced in accordance with the contract by pharmaceutical companies in other countries, including India, China and Argentina.