TEHRAN – Iran will receive new consignments of coronavirus vaccines from Japan and China over the next few days.

Import of coronavirus vaccines is going on with delivering new consignments by Japan and China in the coming days, Food and Drug Administration spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour wrote on his Twitter account.

Meanwhile, Mohammad-Hassan Qosian-Moqaddam, secretary-general of the Iranian Red Crescent Society, said on Thursday that the eighth batch of coronavirus, amounting to 1,130,400 doses of the vaccine, provided by the IRCS has been imported to the country.

Since mid-February, 20 vaccine consignments, equaling 9.4 million doses, have been delivered to the country.

Toshimitsu Motegi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, announced on July 13 that the Japanese government will donate 2.9 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to Iran through the COVAX facility.

Vaccines imported from several countries, including Russia, India, Italy, and South Korea, have been imported to Iran.

Iran has so far received two batches of vaccines from the COVAX facility. The first shipment included over 700,000 doses of Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured by South

Korean firm SK Bioscience, and the second one consisted of 1,452,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured by Catalent Anagni of Italy.

Iran also has so far taken delivery of nine batches of the Russian “Sputnik V” vaccine, containing 90,000 doses.

Mass vaccination against COVID-19 started on Iranian citizens with Sputnik V on February 9.

The Islamic Republic is currently producing vaccines jointly with three countries of Cuba, Russia, and Australia, which may also be released by September, while two homegrown vaccines have so far received the emergency use license.

MG