Tunisia receives COVID-19 vaccine donated by China

Airport workers unload the China-aided COVID-19 vaccine at the Carthage International Airport in Tunis, Tunisia, March 25, 2021. Tunisia received on Thursday a batch of COVID-19 vaccine donated by China and delivered aboard a military plane of the Tunisian Ministry of Defense. (Photo by Adel Ezzine/Xinhua)

TUNIS, March 25 (Xinhua) -- Tunisia received on Thursday a batch of COVID-19 vaccine donated by China and delivered aboard a military plane of the Tunisian Ministry of Defense.

"China is the first country to provide a vaccine donation for Tunisia," Chinese Ambassador to Tunisia Zhang Jianguo said at the Carthage International Airport in Tunis, capital of Tunisia.

"We are convinced that these vaccines will contribute to controlling the epidemic situation, the recovery of the economy in Tunisia and the protection of the health of Tunisians," Zhang said.

"Today, humanity is fighting against COVID-19 ... The vaccine is the priority of the moment and remains a critical element of the anti-epidemic cooperation of the international community," the Chinese ambassador noted.

Meanwhile at the airport, Tunisian Minister of Health Faouzi Mehdi expressed gratitude to China for sending "large quantities of Sinovac vaccine against COVID-19 as a donation."

"This is the third vaccine against COVID-19 that our country has received after Sputnik V and Pfizer ... It will be of great benefit to us to speed up the vaccination process," the minister said.

Cooperation with China "goes back a very long time in various fields," Mehdi added.