China announces to gift more doses of COVID vaccine to Pakistan by March 31

ISLAMABAD: China has announced to send more COVID vaccine doses to Pakistan as a gift by March 31 after foreign ministers from both sides- Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Wang Yi- held a telephonic conversation today, ARY NEWS reported on Monday.

Both of the them discussed ongoing Covid-19 situation and other matters relating to mutual interest.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi expressed gratitude to the Chinese leadership for their best wishes for Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is suffering from the infection.

He also lauded the support extended by China to Pakistan in tackling the COVID-19 situation and thanked their leadership for sending vaccines to the country as a gift.

The Chinese foreign minister said that more than 100 countries have approached them for the vaccine, however, they have prioritized the provision of doses to Pakistan owing to their exemplary friendship.

Both of them also agreed to continue maintaining high-level contact between the two sides in the future.

Earlier in the day, it was reported that Pakistan will receive the fourth shipment of a Chinese COVID-19 vaccine this month.

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The sources said the shipment containing 60,000 doses of CanSino Biologics COVID-19 vaccine will arrive in Islamabad on March 26 while the fifth batch of the vaccine will reach the country on March 31.

They said the government has asked China for shipment of one million doses. So far, Pakistan has received three shipments of Sinopharm vaccine as Beijing has donated 1.5 million doses to Islamabad.

Pakistan is currently vaccinating frontline healthcare workers and citizens over the age of 60 free of cost using Sinopharm doses donated by China.