The Palestinian Ministry of Health has approved Russia's first vaccine against Covid-19, known as Sputnik V, for use in Palestinian self-government territory, Russia's sovereign wealth fund said today.
The first shipment of the vaccine is expected to arrive next month, with all deliveries expected in the first quarter of this year, according to the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), which is responsible for marketing the vaccine overseas.
However, the RDIF did not disclose how many doses would be sent to the Palestinian Authority, which enforces limited self-regulation in the West Bank under a temporary peace agreement with Israel. In addition, the supply is alleged to be facilitated by factory partners in India, China, South Korea and elsewhere.
According to Russian authorities, any Sputnik V export agreement will only involve doses produced by overseas factory partners, with Russian-made vaccines used to meet domestic needs.
Thus, the delivery of Russia's first 300,000 international vaccine dosage, which left for Argentina last month, has angered the country as critics have questioned why exports take precedence over domestic needs.
Palestinian authorities, meanwhile, said they would receive their first dose of Covid-19 vaccine from British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca in March, claiming that Israel was not responsible for ensuring vaccines were provided in residential areas.
Although Israel has become the world leader in vaccination programs, Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and in Gaza have not yet received their first vaccine supply.
