ISLAMABAD 

Pakistan on Wednesday received another half a million doses of COVID-19 vaccine as a gift from its longtime ally China.

A special plane carrying 500,000 doses of the vaccine developed by China’s Sinopharm landed at the Nur Khan Airbase near the capital Islamabad.

"The next batch of Sinopharm vaccine was received today. These 500,000 doses will ensure smooth continuation of our vaccination drive, currently underway for senior citizens," Sultan said on Twitter.

"We're grateful to China for their support. This gesture is a testament to our long-standing friendship," he added.


On Feb. 1, Pakistan received the first batch of as many doses of Sinopharm as a gift from Beijing.

The South Asian country of over 200 million people begun its vaccination campaign for the frontline health workers on Feb. 2 and for people above 60 on March 10. 


Last month, the government said it had secured 17 million doses of the vaccine developed by Oxford-AstraZeneca through the WHO-led COVAX initiative.

Pakistan currently facing the third wave of coronavirus pandemic as new cases spike in the country over the last week.

The country reported 2,351 new cases over the past 24 hours, raising the total number of infections to 612,315. With 61 new fatalities, the death toll rose to 13,656, according to Health Ministry data.

Authorities already closed all educational institutions in major cities of northeastern Punjab and northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces until March 28 to stem the virus spread.