Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Monday that negotiations on COVID-19 vaccines with global pharmaceutical firms are in the final stages and promised to transparently notify the South Korean public as soon as contracts are signed.

Chairing a meeting of related ministers, Chung said there may have been some misunderstandings or concerns related to government efforts to secure vaccines as disclosing details to the public during the negotiation process with individual firms was not possible. 

But he said the government will, in the near future, unveil its efforts made so far and the results achieved. Chung also asked for cooperation from related ministries to prevent any problems with budget matters.

The prime minister noted that public interest is rising in the country's preparations as clinical trial results are being announced by global vaccine developers. He assured that the government's goal is to secure a necessary amount of vaccines in a timely manner.

Appearing on a KBS program on Sunday, Health Minister Park Neung-hoo said the government has secured enough COVID-19 vaccines to inoculate more than 60 percent of the population and that related consultations were ongoing with global pharmaceutical firms.