China donates two million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to Belarus

November 10, BPN. Chinese authorities have handed over two million doses of COVID-19 vaccine along with two million disposable syringes in humanitarian aid to Belarus, the Belarusian embassy in Beijing reported.

The shipment is scheduled to arrive in Belarus on November 10 or 11.

China donated a total of about five million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to Belarus in 2021-2022. Authorities also bought additional 4.6 million doses.

Belarus uses Russian Sputnik Lite, Chinese Vero Cell, Cuban Soberana Plus as well as locally-manufactured Russian Sputnik V for COVID-19 vaccines.

Earlier, Alaksandr Łukašenka spoke out against the purchase of Western vaccines, allegedly to prevent his opponents from traveling abroad and receiving “instructions.”

In December 2021, authorities refused to accept Western vaccines offered free of charge by the European Union for the Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries. Former EU ambassador to Belarus Dirk Schuebel told journalists that the EU had allocated a total of €2.5 billion for this purpose, but did not receive any response from Belarus.

Over 70 percent of Belarusians have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the Belarusian health ministry. The World Health Organization says that a 70-percent vaccination rate is a milestone in achieving herd immunity.