Not so long ago, the coronavirus crept up to the borders of our country. In Russia, about 300 cases have already been recorded. How are things in neighboring countries and will the borders be closed?
Are the borders of Russia closed due to the coronavirus?
At the moment, the borders of Russia are closed until May 1. Foreigners can no longer enter the country. The exception is diplomats and members of their families: entry and exit are still open for them (of course, subject to quarantine measures).
Similar measures have been introduced in the EU countries. Entry into the Schengen area is still limited. EU citizens can travel around Europe, but Russians are not allowed to enter there.
Since March 23, flights with other countries have been suspended. The exception is flights from Moscow to the capitals of other states. Now Russians cannot go on holiday to Turkey, Thailand or Vietnam. There is no word yet on when mass flights will resume.
The situation in countries bordering the Russian Federation
In countries bordering the Russian Federation, the situation is different.
China
In China, where the epidemic came from, things are on the mend. Attractions are already open for tourists, although admission to the most popular places is still limited. For example, no more than two thousand people can visit the Shanghai Museum in a day. Visitors must wear masks, and before they enter the building, employees change their temperature.
Experts say that China was helped to defeat the epidemic by 5 factors:
- accumulated experience in combating epidemics;
- mobilization of available resources. In Wuhan, they managed to build a hospital in just one week: this has not yet been possible in any other country in the world;
- investment in science. The Chinese government has been investing huge sums in scientific research since the 1980s;
- high level of people's trust in the government. The people of China took every precaution to prevent the spread of the virus, and it paid off;
- strategy of complete isolation of the infected. If at the beginning of the epidemic European and American media criticized China because of the closure of some cities for quarantine, then in early spring the whole world had to make sure that this strategy was absolutely correct.
Footnote. The Sino-Russian border was closed due to the virus on January 31, 2020.
North Korea
North Korea is free from coronavirus. Despite the close proximity of China, not a single case has been recorded in the country. Of course, it cannot be ruled out that the data is simply being hidden by the North Korean government.
On January 30, Pyongyang declared a state of emergency in the country and closed its borders to tourists (most of whom were Chinese). The country promptly set up a headquarters to deal with a future epidemic, and also developed a system for transmitting tests for coronavirus.
True, one should not think that the situation in North Korea is so prosperous. It is worth remembering that the "hermit country" has not yet published data on the number of deaths from starvation in the 90s of the twentieth century, and according to sociologists, their number may exceed 2 thousand people.
Footnote. During the epidemic in China, the government decided to raise the wages of medical workers.
Mongolia
So far, 10 cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in Mongolia. At the same time, all patients "brought" the virus from abroad.
Quarantine has been introduced in the country: international passenger transportation has been suspended, and schoolchildren and students have been sent on “vacations” until April 30.
Footnote. At the moment, China's experience in combating coronavirus is of great value to doctors from other countries. For example, a delegation of 9 specialists went to Italy from China to help defeat the epidemic. Unfortunately, at the moment in Italy there is an extremely unfavorable situation. The Apennine Peninsula has overtaken even China, where the pandemic began, in terms of the number of coronavirus victims. The number of victims of the disease in the country amounted to about 3,500 thousand people.
Azerbaijan
At present, 65 cases of the disease have been identified in Azerbaijan. On March 22, 12 new patients with coronavirus were detected. All of them are under medical supervision.
The country has recorded one death from the coronavirus.
Georgia
Georgia has declared a state of emergency for a month due to the pandemic. The country's borders are closed to foreigners, all educational institutions are under quarantine. The curfew has not yet been introduced. Many organizations have switched to telecommuting. Registry offices have suspended accepting applications for marriage registration.
A total of 47 people have been infected in the country, one of whom has been cured. Most of the patients became infected while abroad. All patients indicate from whom they could have received the virus, and comply with quarantine measures, so that the situation is under control.
Footnote. The pandemic could deal a devastating blow to the Georgian economy. An economic crisis is predicted, which will be more serious than all the previous ones.
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan has confirmed 60 cases of coronavirus infection.
On March 15, a state of emergency was introduced in the country, which will last for 30 days. Additionally, it was decided to introduce a quarantine regime in Almaty and Nur-Sultan.
Ukraine
In Ukraine, 47 cases of infection with a new virus have been confirmed. Three patients died, only one is considered fully recovered. Most of the infected were registered in Bukovina, where two villages had to be quarantined.
Perhaps in the near future a total quarantine will be introduced in the country.
One case of infection was registered in the Crimea. The sick man returned from France.
Currently, the issue of involving graduate medical students in the fight against infection is being considered.
Belarus
As of March 22, the number of infected people in Belarus reached 76 people, 15 of whom were discharged from medical institutions. 61 patients are in hospitals under medical supervision.
The country has organized a procedure for testing citizens for coronavirus infection. In total, more than 20 thousand tests have been carried out.
Poland
The first infected person was detected in Polza on March 4th. It was a man who had recently returned from Germany. Already on March 12, the first death from the infection was announced: a woman aged 65 died. On March 22, a 27-year-old woman died of coronavirus. The patient did not suffer from chronic diseases and died a few days after giving birth to a child. The woman contracted the virus from her mother, who recently returned from Germany.
So far, 536 cases have been identified in Poland, of which five have died, 13 have recovered, and three are in serious condition. There is a shortage of coronavirus tests in the country. It is expected that the tests will be brought to the Benefit from China.
On March 22, the Polish government decided to use alcoholic beverages confiscated at the border to disinfect homes and vehicles.
the Baltics
The coronavirus has dealt a real blow to the Baltic countries, from which they will not be able to recover soon. The Lithuanian government has declared a state of emergency. A center was established to coordinate actions aimed at combating the epidemic. 8 cases of coronavirus have been recorded in the country.
On March 17, air traffic, as well as bus and rail transportation in Latvia were suspended. An exception will be made only for residents of the country who are returning home from other EU countries. The government calls on citizens who are abroad of Latvia to think about the need to return to their homeland.
Schools in the Baltic countries have been switched to distance learning, mass events of more than 50 people have been cancelled.
In total, 26 people are infected in Latvia.
A state of emergency has also been declared in Estonia, where 115 patients infected with the coronavirus have been identified.
Norway and Finland
Despite the fact that the situation with coronavirus in Scandinavia is not as dire as in central Europe, the Russian government urges people not to travel to these regions.
At the moment, more than 50 cases have been identified in Finland, most of which are in home quarantine.
Many patients "brought" the virus from abroad. For example, one woman became infected in Italy. Returning to her homeland, she infected several members of her family, including her son.
Due to the coronavirus, international military exercises that were supposed to take place in Norway had to be canceled. One of the participants was diagnosed with the virus, which is why more than a thousand people are forced to quarantine.
When will everything be back to normal?
Epidemiologists are trying to answer the question of when the pandemic will decline. For comparison, we can take the swine flu epidemic that broke out in 2009. Then, according to unofficial estimates, more than 200 thousand people died.
The coronavirus is much more contagious than the swine flu virus. For this reason, more stringent quarantine measures are being introduced, which lead to a halt in production activities in a number of countries, which will lead to serious economic damage. For this reason, it is said that the main consequence of the pandemic will be the global economic crisis. This is already noticeable now: prices have begun to rise, while stock markets are showing a fall.
Due to the contagiousness of the virus, the epidemic in the coming months may cover not only Europe and Asia, but the planet as a whole.
When will the pandemic end? It's impossible to answer. For example, the swine flu pandemic lasted for a year, which is due to the ability of the virus to mutate.
The coronavirus has not yet demonstrated such ability. But he has another "advantage" - high contagiousness. Therefore, it is likely that the pandemic will rage until the end of 2020.
Footnote. Experts will have to answer the question about the causes of high mortality from coronavirus in Italy. Most likely, this is due to the high average age of the population (almost half of the country's inhabitants are over 60). The virus is known to be especially dangerous for the elderly, in whom it often causes such a serious complication as bilateral viral pneumonia.
Coronavirus on the border with Russia poses a serious threat. After all, most of the infected "bring" the infection from abroad. Therefore, in the near future you should not go on trips abroad, including to countries where the situation seems to be favorable.