Moscow, Feb 24 (IANS): The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF, Russias sovereign wealth fund) announced the delivery of the first batch of Sputnik V vaccine against coronavirus to Mexico.

On February 3, 2021 the Federal Commission for the Protection against Sanitary Risk of Mexico (COFEPRIS) approved Sputnik V under the emergency use authorization procedure without additional clinical trials in the country. Mexico has become the first country of North America to approve Sputnik V.

Sputnik V is approved for use in more than 30 countries making the vaccine one of the world's top three coronavirus vaccines in terms of the number of approvals issued by regulatory authorities.

Russia, Belarus, Argentina, Bolivia, Serbia, Algeria, Palestine, Venezuela, Paraguay, Turkmenistan, Hungary, UAE, Iran, Republic of Guinea, Tunisia, Armenia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Republika Srpska (entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina), Lebanon, Myanmar, Pakistan, Mongolia, Bahrain, Montenegro, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Gabon, San Marino and Ghana have authorized Sputnik V.

Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, commented: "RDIF supports the efforts of the Government of Mexico to protect the population with a safe and effective Russian Sputnik V vaccine. Cooperation between Russia and Mexico on the vaccine is a great example of pooling efforts to jointly fight the pandemic and save lives. The positive decision of COFEPRIS to grant an emergency use authorization to Sputnik V provides people of Mexico with access to one of the best vaccines in the world."