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 The Russian government late last year granted Russian drugmaker
Pharmasyntez a compulsory licence for one year to manufacture the
drug under a different name without Gilead's permission.
The government said in a decree at the time that the move was in the
interests of Russia's own security. According to the decree, Russia
had to pay compensation to the drug's patent-holder. The amount was
not specified.
Pharmasyntez had asked the Kremlin to allow it to produce a generic
version of remdesivir before the government decree was issued.
Vikram Punia, its director, said the company had also written to
Gilead in July last year to try to obtain their consent in the form
of a voluntary licence, but had not heard back.
Pharmasyntez produces remdesivir under the name Remdeform. A
shipment of the drug was sent by Russia to India on Tuesday as part
of a delivery of humanitarian aid.
Gilead said in a statement it was disappointed by the Supreme
Court's ruling and called the issuance of a compulsory licence
"unnecessary and counterproductive".
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 "...We have stood ready to work
with Russia to expand access to Veklury (remdesevir)
since mid-2020. Intellectual property is not,
and has never been, a significant barrier to
access to medicines in Russia," Gilead said.
It said it believed the original Russian
government decision fell short "of the
requirements of Russian law." While criticising
what it called inconsistency in the Russian
government's pricing policy, it said it had
maintained remdesevir supplies to all eligible
patients in Russia.
(Reporting by Polina Nikolskaya in Moscow and by
Ankur Banerjee in Bengalaru ; Editing by Andrew
Osborn)
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