MOSCOW, Dec. 5, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Russian Direct
Investment Fund (RDIF, Russia's
sovereign wealth fund) announces that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has granted approval
for entry of individuals vaccinated with the Russian Sputnik V
vaccine starting from January 1,
2022.
Saudi Arabia joined 101 other
countries approving entry of individuals vaccinated with the
Sputnik V vaccine following the extensive cooperation and
discussions between Ministry of Health of Saudi Arabia and RDIF, supported by the
Ministry of Investments of the country. Granting approval for
Sputnik V vaccinated to visit Saudi
Arabia and further joint steps in fighting the pandemic were
in focus of the meeting between Health Minister of Saudi Arabia
Fahad Al-Jalajel, Minister of
Investment of Saudi Arabia Khalid
Al-Falih and RDIF CEO Kirill
Dmitriev in Riyadh earlier
in November.
The decision reached will enable Muslims from all over the world
vaccinated with Sputnik V to participate in the Hajj and the Umrah
pilgrimages to Islam's holiest sites in the cities of Mecca and Medina.
Upon entering the country, persons vaccinated with Sputnik V
will be required to quarantine for 48 hours and take a PCR
test.
Countries opening their borders for those who have received the
Sputnik V vaccine are demonstrating the will to help their tourism
industry and businesses to recover more quickly. As Saudi Arabia opens its borders for the Sputnik
V vaccinated, this decision will play an important role for
increasing the tourist flows and establishing new business ties
between Russia and Saudi Arabia, including through activities of
The Russia-Saudi Economic Council.
Established in 2019, The Council aims to develop bilateral
economic and trade ties as well as investments between Russia and Saudi
Arabia across all sectors. It is Co-Chaired by Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the RDIF and HRH Prince
Abdullah bin Bandar bin Abdul Aziz,
the Kingdom's National Guard Minister.
Overall, separating authorization of COVID vaccines from
vaccination certificates is another important step to avoiding
vaccine discrimination and supporting governments' efforts in
safely re-opening borders for both locals and tourists.
Key requirements of 102 countries which allow visits following
Sputnik V vaccination[*]:
- Sputnik V vaccinated individuals may visit a total of 31
countries without any additional COVID-19 related approval;
- Other 71 countries request negative PCR or positive antibody
tests or have additional requirements at entry.
Only 15 countries require vaccines other than Sputnik V. Only 5
of these countries (less than 9% of international travel journeys),
including the U.S. (representing less than 3%), fully rely on the
WHO's approved list of vaccines which Sputnik V is expected to be
added to this year.
Sources: ministries of respective countries, tourism
sites
* Visa and (or) other entry permit needed, A person should also
meet other requirements not related to coronavirus restrictions.
The analysis of entry opportunities is based on requirements for
the population of the most countries, and may not reflect
restrictions or indulgences in force for selected countries or
certain categories. 27 countries still have borders closed for
visitors from majority of other countries.