RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – After calling Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday afternoon, President Jair Bolsonaro said that his government intends to address the obstacles to importing the Sputnik V vaccine and will also try to enable the production of the vaccine in the country.
A team from Brazilian Health Regulator Anvisa will visit the Russian laboratory facilities responsible for producing the immunizer for an inspection.
Bolsonaro recorded a video summarizing the conversation, in which he pledged to try to unlock the process of buying the vaccines.
“We still depend on solving some obstacles here in Brazil, and we are finalizing contracts with other authorities, including Anvisa, on how we can effectively import the vaccine,” he explained. “God willing, this will be solved.”
Anvisa is still analyzing documentation sent by the Gamaleya laboratory, responsible for production, and has had difficulty releasing the emergency use due to lack of technical details about the product.
A consortium formed by governors who have been negotiating with the Russians has been pressuring the regulatory agency to expedite the approval.
The Sputnik V is represented in Brazil by União Química.
Source: Valor