March 16, 2022 – 15:03
Guatemala intends to annul the contract with Russia because the local health authorities did not give the endorsement for the use of the Sputnik Light vaccine
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CITY OF GUATEMALA.- Guatemala seeks to terminate an existing contract with Russia for the purchase of 4 million doses of Sputnik Light anticovid vaccines, due to shipping problems due to the war with Ukraine, President Alejandro Giammattei said.
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We are not buying any vaccine from Russia because there is no way in which they can be transferred from Russia or (brought) to us, therefore legal analyzes are already being carried out for the suspension of that contract (…) due to the situation” of war, Giammattei told journalists.
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Guatemala has a contract with Russia with the “commitment” to acquire 4 million doses of Sputnik Light as soon as it obtains the emergency registration from the World Health Organization (WHO), the Guatemalan Minister of Health indicated in February. Francis Eat.
However, Giammattei said that they also intend to annul the contract because the local health authorities did not give the endorsement for the use of that vaccine, as required by Guatemalan legislation. “We can’t use Sputnik Light,” he said.
The contract is part of a first purchase that the Central American country made to the Russian Direct Investment Fund last April of 8 million doses of the Sputnik V vaccine -which is also not recognized by the WHO- for a cost of about 79, 6 million dollars.
The original purchase was for 16 million doses, but both parties agreed that only half of the order would be fulfilled due to the delay in deliveries that provoked harsh criticism against Giammattei, including allegations of corruption.
One million doses of Sputnik V reached their expiration date in February and could not be used.
Guatemalan authorities blamed anti-vaccine groups that generate misinformation about immunizations, but opposition deputies denounced government deficiencies in the process to transfer immunizations to vaccination centers and flaws in the communication strategy.
Guatemala, with nearly 17 million inhabitants, has so far added 807,453 cases of COVID-19 and 17,170 deaths.
– SOURCE: With information from AFP–
