A large batch of Russia’s Sputnik V anti-coronavirus vaccine will be delivered to Guatemala in the coming days, the country’s Foreign Minister Pedro Brolo told reporters, commenting on his visit to Moscow in the past week, Trend reports with reference to TASS.
"I met with a representative of the Russian Direct Investment Fund [RDIF], Vladimir Primak," he said. "We expressed our concerns and stressed the urgency of receiving larger batches of Sputnik V <…> They confirmed a shipment of 400,000 doses of the Sputnik V vaccine by the end of this week," he said.
Meanwhile, Guatemalan Health Minister Amelia Flores told lawmakers on Tuesday the government decided to ask Russia to return the money paid for Sputnik V, due to insufficient supplies.
"We ask <…> to return the money," the minister said in a video address to the country's parliament, published by Prensa Libre on its website. "If, at some point, they have an opportunity to sell the vaccines, we will pay for them once they are delivered."
According to Flores, the Health Ministry has sent a letter on the issue to the Russian Direct Investment Fund, saying that the money must be refunded within five days after the letter is received. The ministry reserves the right to take judicial measures when the deadline expires.
According to the Prensa Libre newspaper, Guatemala has already made a 50% pre-payment for 16 million doses of Sputnik V, but has received only 150,000 doses to date. The country’s government registered the Russian vaccine in February.
According to official statistics, over 290,000 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Guatemala since the start of the pandemic. Some 264,400 patients have recovered and 9,147 have died. During the country’s vaccination campaign, the authorities used over 925,000 anti-coronavirus vaccines. The first dose has been administered to 767,300 people, while almost 158,000 received both components.