NUR SULTAN, Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan on Tuesday announced it will start mass vaccination against the coronavirus next month.

During the first meeting of the newly formed government, Health Minister Alexey Tsoy announced "mass vaccination" with Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine as of Feb. 1.

Noting that vaccination would be carried out in six phases, Tsoy said health care professionals with high risk of infection will primarily be vaccinated, followed by faculty members, law enforcement officials, citizens with heart, lung and diabetes diseases, and university students.

The country aims to vaccinate nearly 6 million people by the end of this year, he added.

Since December 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic has claimed more than 2.03 million lives in 191 countries and regions.

Over 95.17 million cases have been reported worldwide, with recoveries now over 52.45 million, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University.

The US, India, and Brazil remain the worst-hit countries in terms of cases.