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COVID-19: Central Asia Employs Additional Measures; Armenia Suspends Exports Of Medical Items
By RFE/RL March 20, 2020
The global coronavirus pandemic has infected more than 246,000 people and killed over 10,000 worldwide, causing mass disruptions as governments continue to try to slow the spread of the new respiratory illness.
Here's a roundup of developments in RFE/RL's broadcast countries.
Central Asia
Central Asian nations are moving to take additional measures to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Uzbekistan's Transport Ministry said on its Telegram channel that international terrestrial and air passenger traffic has been suspended for 40 days as of March 20.
The regulation does not affect cargo transportation.
Also on March 20, state-run media in Uzbekistan reported that President Shavkat Mirziyoev signed a decree to establish an anti-crisis fund of $1 billion to deal with the effects of the coronavirus.
Uzbekistan is Central Asia's most populous nation, with 32 million people.
In neighboring Kazakhstan, five more coronavirus cases were reported on March 20, including the first two cases outside Nur-Sultan, the capital, and the country's largest city, Almaty.
With three more cases in Almaty and two in the central city of Qaraghandy, the number of coronavirus cases in Kazakhstan is now 49.
As of March 19, Nur-Sultan and Almaty have been sealed off with police, security forces, and military personnel blocking roads and highways inside and around the two cities.
In Kyrgyzstan, a state of emergency was announced in the southern district of Nookat, where another three coronavirus cases were reported on March 20, bringing the total number to six. Earlier, a state of emergency was announced in the Suzak district, where three men tested positive for the coronavirus.
All six persons recently returned to Kyrgyzstan from Saudi Arabia.
In Tajikistan, the government suspended all international flights as of March 20. No coronavirus cases have been reported in Tajikistan so far.
In Turkmenistan, RFE/RL correspondents report that as of March 19, Ashgabat, the capital, has been surrounded with checkpoints to regulate entrances into the city. Only residents of Ashgabat can enter the city now. No coronavirus cases were officially recorded.
According to the correspondents, intercity movement in Turkmenistan has also been restricted.
Armenia
Armenia has suspended exports of some medical items over the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinian, who coordinates Armenia's efforts under a 30-day state-of-emergency rule, published a list of products subject to restrictions on March 19 that includes protective gear for medics, equipment for mechanical lung ventilation, COVID-19 test kits, respirators, medical masks, alcohol-based sanitizers, and other items.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said earlier in the week that his government would allocate at least 150 billion drams (some $300 million) to support the economy and limit the impact of the pandemic.
Armenia's Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports said on March 20 that all universities in the country will switch to online learning.
The current number of officially recorded coronavirus cases in Armenia is 136.
Azerbaijan
In neighboring Azerbaijan, President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on March 19, allocating 1 billion manats ($600 million) to deal with the impact of the pandemic on the oil-rich nation's economy.
Meanwhile, as of March 20, the number of the coronavirus cases in Azerbaijan is 44, with one fatality.
Georgia
In another South Caucasus nation, Georgia, where as of March 19, only groceries, pharmacies, gas stations, post offices, and banks were allowed to operate, the number of coronavirus cases reached 43.
Russia
Activists in Russia's Republic of Tatarstan have sued authorities of the regional capital, Kazan, for ordering them to provide participants to planned protest rallies with surgical masks because of the coronavirus outbreak.
Organizers of the rallies against constitutional amendments that, among other things, would allow President Vladimir Putin to stay in power after his term ends in 2024 told RFE/RL that the city administration approved their request to hold three protests on March 22 in Kazan only on condition they provide participants with face masks and regularly measure the participants' body temperature during the rallies.
Activists Emil Garayev and Vladimir Kolodtsev told RFE/RL that authorities justified the order by citing the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The order was included in the city administration's response to the activists' request for permission to hold the rallies.
The activists filed a lawsuit against the mayor's office, challenging the order, adding that a lawyer from the Open Russia opposition organization, Elza Nisanbekova, is their legal representative.
The activists also say that they received the city administration's answer to their request seven days after they officially filed it, although the law provides for an answer to be delivered in three days.
With reporting by RFE/RL's Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Turkmen, Uzbek, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Georgian, and Tatar-Bashkir services
Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
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