Putin throws his weight behind Sputnik V vaccine in Thailand

Gen Prayut said he had been keen to include Sputnik V in his country’s Covid-19 vaccine arsenal.

He had instructed the Thai Foreign Ministry to seek to secure purchases of the Sputnik vaccine, he said. 

The message came back that Russian president Vladimir Putin had approved the move in the light of long-established friendly ties between the two countries, which could be strengthened by an agreement on Sputnik V.

The Thai government has been criticised lately for a slow rollout of vaccines amid an upward trend on infections.