BRATISLAVA: Slovakia on Monday received a first shipment of Russian vaccines as it battles the world’s highest Covid death rate, the second EU state after Hungary to receive the Sputnik doses.

“You can see behind me the first shipment of the two million Sputnik V vaccines,” Slovak Prime Minister Igor Matovic told reporters at a press conference at the airport in Kosice in eastern Slovakia. Slovakia has shown growing interest in the Russian vaccine in recent weeks. Slovakia has seen an average of 22.66 Covid-related deaths per 100,000 inhabitants in the last 14 days, followed by neighbouring Czech Republic with 20.51, according to an AFP tally.