MOSCOW, September 14. /TASS/. Russia has proposed to Bolivia to produce the Sputnik V vaccine on the territory of the Latin American republic, Bolivian deputy minister for foreign trade and integration Benjamin Blanco said during a video conference with Latin American countries on Tuesday.
"Russia proposed to produce its [Sputnik V] vaccine in our country and to seek local partners in Bolivia to produce its vaccine," he said. "This is an important signal for the entire world that Russia is open to share its knowledge, its technologies with different countries, and Bolivia is counting on establishing the production of the Russian vaccine on its territory. This will be a wonderful example of our countries’ joint investments," he explained.
The official also emphasized the importance of the deliveries of the Russian vaccine for Bolivia. "I would like to note the role of Russia in the supplies of the Sputnik V vaccine. Our President Luis Arce, one of the first presidents to get immunized with this vaccine, spoke about this. I would like to note the bilateral work we conducted together with the Russian government which allowed us to sign an agreement on the deliveries of this vaccine to Bolivia," he noted.
An inoculation campaign against coronavirus using Sputnik V was launched in Bolivia on January 29. Presidential Spokesman Jorge Richter said even before the medication had arrived in the country that the president planned to be one of the first to receive a vaccine shot to show his trust in vaccination. The Bolivian president got immunized with Sputnik V in May.
Apart from Sputnik V, the Swedish-British AstraZeneca vaccine and China’s Sinopharm are also in use in Bolivia.