SKOPJE - Prime Minister of North Macedonia Zoran Zaev was vaccinated here on Thursday with the first shot of COVID-19 vaccine by the Chinese manufacturer Sinopharm.

Zaev told reporters that he did his personal and civic duty and received the first dose of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine against COVID-19.

"I feel great and will continue my daily work agenda," he said after being vaccinated at the Boris Trajkovski sports hall.

Zaev encouraged all citizens to register for the vaccination as it is the only effective way to protect themselves from the pandemic, adding that the vaccines are safe, checked and tested.

The Sinopharm vaccines arrived in North Macedonia on April 30, leading the way to mass vaccination of the population in the country.

Following his vaccination, Zaev, along with Chinese Ambassador to North Macedonia Zhang Zuo, went to Polyclinic Jane Sandanski in Skopje for an inspection on the vaccination with Chinese vaccines there.

During the inspection, Zaev said that North Macedonia thanked China for its strong support and help for fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Chinese vaccine was delivered in a timely way to North Macedonia to promote the mass vaccination in the country, he said.

The prime minister said that under the framework of cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European countries, North Macedonia has always maintained close exchanges with top Chinese leadership, which has effectively promoted vaccine cooperation between the two countries.

For his part, Zhang said that the Chinese vaccines were helping North Macedonia to carry out mass vaccination, which is another example of friendly relations between the two countries, reflecting China's goodwill for active support for North Macedonia in the joint fight against the pandemic.

"China is ready to continue to deepen its practical cooperation with North Macedonia and work together in the fight against the pandemic, and to promote economic recovery for the benefit of our two countries and peoples," Zhang said.