Italy-Russia Cooperation On COVID Vaccine To Boost Bilateral Pharma Ties - Entrepreneurs

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 06th August, 2020) The collective effort for developing a coronavirus vaccine opens up new opportunities for Russia and Italy to enhance medical and pharmacological cooperation, Vittorio Torrembini, the president of the Association of Italian Entrepreneurs in Russia (GIM-Unimpresa), told Sputnik in an interview.

"Almost all Italian pharmacological companies are represented here in Russia. An active collaboration is underway, including between universities. The University of Oxford, which recently partnered with the Russian vaccine developers, has already had a cooperation agreement with the Italian government. Therefore I believe that new opportunities will emerge within this initiative," Torrembini said.

The University of Oxford's vaccine is one of the two vaccines under development in the United Kingdom in partnership with the AstraZeneca pharmaceutical company. It began clinical trials on April 2 and is currently on the WHO-monitored list of vaccines that are in the final phase of human trials on the path to getting clearance for industrial production.

Italy's Pomezia-based Advent Srl company signed an agreement with Oxford's Jenner Institute to collaborate in the development of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine on July 2.

On July 17, Russia's R-Pharm company signed an agreement with AstraZeneca to produce the Oxford vaccine in Russia and become a hub for its subsequent export to some 30-50 countries.