The Health Ministry of Ukraine has signed a contract to supply the country as soon as possible with a vaccine against the respiratory disease COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus produced by Sinovac Biotech, the President's Office of Ukraine said on Wednesday.

"Ukraine will use the Sinovac Biotech vaccine to protect, first of all, citizens at critical risk of infection, and those who perform critical functions in the fight against the pandemic. Vaccinations will be free [...] The contract for the supply to the territory of our state was signed with the Ukrainian pharmaceutical company JSC Lekhim, which, according to the official confirmation of the Sinovac Biotech company, is the only authorized representative of the vaccine manufacturer in Ukraine. This is about the purchase of 1.8 million doses at a price of UAH 504 per unit," the President's Office said in the statement released on Wednesday.

The President's Office said that Sinovac Biotech (CoronaVac) is an inactivated vaccine that is produced in a syringe and stored at Celsius temperatures from two to eight degrees above zero.

According to the results of intermediate data, clinical trials conducted in different countries have shown the effectiveness of the medicine up to 97%. Thus, the third phase of clinical trials was carried out in Indonesia (1,600 patients, efficiency 97%) and Turkey (1,325 patients, efficiency 91%). The third phase of clinical trials in Brazil is almost finished, with interim results expected on January 7, 2021. Accordingly, it is planned to obtain a permit for the use of the medicine in China and other countries in January 2021. In addition, in February 2021, the Sinovac Biotech vaccine will be submitted for prequalification at WHO.

"Under the contract's terms, the first batch of vaccine in the amount of 700,000 doses will be delivered to Ukraine within 30 days after official registration in China, or one of the competent authorities of the United States, Great Britain, Swiss Confederation, Japan, Australia, Canada, Israel, India, Mexico, Brazil, or a centralized procedure by the competent authority of the European Union," the President's Office said.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said the contract was signed with an experienced vaccine manufacturer. "The main thing is that we have carried out a very active multi-month negotiation work and have received concrete results. We will start a large public vaccination program in a short time. We really need to protect the most risky social groups, and the government will definitely fulfill this task," Zelensky said.

The President's Office also said that such delivery will be carried out separately from the Covax mechanism, according to which Ukraine is guaranteed to receive 8 million doses of vaccine free of charge.

"Ukraine continues an active negotiation process with all reliable manufacturers in order to increase the access of Ukrainians to an effective and safe vaccine," the President's Office said in the statement.