Government Spokesman Kyriakos Koushos said on Wednesday that we are at the end of the road as regards the pandemic, noting that citizens must demonstrate patience and compliance with the health measures.

As regards the AstraZeneca vaccine, the administration of which has been temporarily suspended in Cyprus, Koushos said that the government awaits the official decision of the EU authorities on Thursday as to whether vaccinations will continue.

In statements after the Council of Ministers meeting, the Spokesman said that the government, in the context of its efforts to ensure a sufficient number of vaccines, and due to the problems that arise, has decided, following instructions from the President of the Republic, to purchase  50,000 Sputnik V vaccine doses, noting that the number can rise if the vaccine is approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA)soon.

Replying to a questions, he said that the government is in direct contact with Russia on the Sputnik V vaccine, adding that the company has assured the government that they can supply with a significant quantity of the vaccine once approved by the EU.

Noting that Cyprus is one of the best countries regarding the management of the pandemic, he said that throughout this period, the government has been helping businesses, households, vulnerable groups, adding that it allocated so far 1.6 billion euro.

Asked about the increase in the number of cases and hospitalisations recorded in the recent days, Koushos said that this is an issue of great concern to the government and that this was discussed during the meeting of the Council of Ministers.

Koushos noted that people must continue taking all health protective measures, be cautious and patient, stressing the need to relieve the burden on the health system.

“It is unfair to have any setbacks now that we are at the end of the road”, he said, noting that the citizens have indeed made many sacrifices to be where we are today.

Source: Parikiaki.com