Italian health official Alessio D'Amato insisted time was the "fundamental factor" in the fight against the coronavirus and said Russia's Sputnik V would likely be one of the jabs Rome turned to in order to speed up the country's vaccination programme, Express reported.
The Lazio Region Health Counselor added that Italy would be able to source alternative vaccines quickly by "limiting time spent on bureaucracy" amid the EU's struggle to secure adequate supplies.
Mr D'Amato told RT: "In this case, it's not the jabs' origin that we should focus on but the efficacy of test results.
"And we must run fast because in the eternal fight between viruses and humans time is the fundamental factor. We can quickly examine other alternatives to contracts already signed in Europe. Among which is certainly the Russian-made Sputnik V vaccine."
"We will ask to test Sputnik V as quickly as possible by limiting time spent on bureaucracy," he explained. "After all its is a vaccine which is already being administered in many countries around the world."
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has also said his country would welcome Chinese and Russian vaccines as EU member states become desperate to speed up their vaccine rollout.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she is open to the use of the Russian made vaccine Sputnik V.