BioNTech CEO Uğur Şahin 'expected to visit Turkey in June to show support for vaccination program'

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The Turkish Health Ministry sent an invitation to BioNTech Chief Executive Uğur Şahin to visit Turkey in June to show his support for the COVID-19 vaccination program, said a pro-government columnist, basing his report on an interview he held with Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.

Yeni Şafak columnist Mehmet Acet wrote on May 8 that the Turkish-born scientist is “looking positively” to this invitation.

Şahin reportedly confirmed to Koca that 30 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine would be sent to Turkey by the end of June. And the deliveries will not stop there. By the end of September, Turkey will have received 60 million more doses of vaccine Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, according to the columnist's report.

Koca reportedly said that every Turkish citizen above the age of 18, and “maybe 16,” might have been vaccinated by the end of summer. If the country reaches such a target, then the population's 70 percent will have been vaccinated in the upcoming three-four months.

Last month, Koca said that Turkey would receive a further 1 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech in May, adding that there were no issues with an option to procure another 30 million in June.

Koca also said that vaccines would be more scarce in the next two months, but President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan contradicted him saying that he saw no issues with procurement and that Ankara would receive shots from Russia, China and BioNTech in the next months.

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