Hospitals in the Russian capital, Moscow, will begin vaccinating people against COVID-19 from Saturday.
President Vladmir Putin has ordered the start of treatment for people most at risk of contracting the disease.
It will start with people working in schools and the health sector as well as social workers.
Russia is using its own vaccine, commonly known as Sput-nik V, which was registered for emergency use in August.
Immunization providers say its effectiveness is 95 percent, and it does not cause any major side effects.
North Korea, Hungary, India and China have already applied for the vaccine, which has not been verified by the International Atomic Energy Agency.
