Turkey's domestically developed COVID vaccine seeks emergency approval

By Emin Avundukluoglu

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's domestically developed COVID-19 vaccine Turkovac has applied for emergency use approval, the country's health minister said on Thursday.

Speaking during the parliament's Planning and Budget Commission meeting, Fehrettin Koca said the vaccine has been submitted to the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency (TITCK).

"We hope it will be in widespread use by the end of this year," he said, adding: "I wish our vaccine to be beneficial for our country, and the entire world."

The inactive vaccine, co-developed by the Turkish Health Ministry, Health Institutes of Turkey, and Erciyes University, completed Phase 1 and 2 trials in Turkey, and Phase 3 studies are also nearing completion.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vowed to make the shot available globally.

Turkey has administered nearly 120 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines using shots developed by Pfizer/BioNTech and China's Sinovac.