BANGKOK, May 4. /TASS/. The Philippines has launched the use of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine on Tuesday.

"We launched the use of the Sputnik V vaccine in the city," Mayor of Manila Isko Moreno said on his Facebook page. "So far, about 200 people have registered to get the first dose of the vaccine." "We thank the country’s government once again for the support of the city government at the height of the epidemic. Now that the vaccine is here, we will continue to work together until the coronavirus is fully beaten," he added.

Medical workers will be the first to get vaccinated against COVID-19, followed by seniors and people with concomitant diseases.

The Sputnik V vaccine was also sent to the cities of Paranaque, Makati, Muntinlupa and Taguig, which form part of the Manila agglomeration. In Taguig, about 20 people have received the jab so far.

On May 1, a trial batch of Sputnik V was delivered to the Philippines.

The Philippines documented the first case of COVID-19 on January 30, 2020. As of now, the number of COVID-19 cases in the republic has surpassed 1.06 mln, over 984,200 patients have recovered and 17,600 have died. The country has approved the emergency use of several COVID-19 vaccines besides Sputnik V, including Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Sinovac, Bharat Biotech and Janssen. On March 1, the country launched vaccination of medical workers with China’s CoronaVac jab. The Philippines received 600,000 doses of CoronaVac on February 28.