President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told reporters Friday that he would be vaccinated against COVID-19. The president also said Turkey was considering acquiring more than one type of vaccine, noting: “We are not limited to China. We are also holding talks with Russia.”
Turkey is anticipating the arrival of a COVID-19 vaccine with Health Minister Fahrettin Koca announcing earlier this week that inoculations could start toward the end of the month. Koca announced Turkey would receive an inactive vaccine on Dec. 11. While he did not disclose which vaccine, it will likely be CoronaVac, which was developed by China’s Sinovac. The vaccine has been undergoing human trials in Turkey for a while now.
“I don’t have a problem with being vaccinated. It is for health after all and we have to do what we should to preserve our health. We also have to set an example for our citizens especially in this time of pandemic. We hope we will rid Turkey of this trouble of the outbreak,” Erdoğan told reporters after Friday prayers in Istanbul.
