Eight Russian citizens who were on the Diamond Princess cruise ship in the port of Japanese Yokohama returned to their homeland, three of them had previously been found to have a coronavirus. This was reported by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova.

In total, there were 24 Russians on the ship.

“The rest of the Russian citizens refused to fly with a special comfortable board of the Ministry of Emergencies,” RIA Novosti quoted Golikov as saying.

Now, the returning Russians, as well as specialists who participated in the evacuation, will be quarantined in Kazan for 14 days under the supervision of doctors.

The Deputy Prime Minister added that compatriots returning to the Russian Federation are doing well. In Russians, whose infection was detected by the results of analyzes, the disease proceeds in a mild form without pronounced symptoms and complications.

Citizens accommodated in the Kazan Infectious Diseases Hospital have already been visited by Anna Popova, the head of Rospotrebnadzor, and Rustam Minnikhanov, president of Tatarstan. The press secretary of the head of the republic Liliya Galimova said that among the patients there are four local residents and one child. She also added that Popova and Minnikhanov exchanged information about the well-being of patients.

  • Anna Popova and Rustam Minnikhanov on the condition of Russians evacuated from the Diamond Princess laner

Introduced due to the outbreak of coronavirus infection COVID-2019, the two-week quarantine on the Diamond Princess cruise ship expired on February 19. In total, there were about 3,700 passengers and crew on board. The first case of the disease on the liner was recorded during the cruise on the 20th of January: an elderly man with signs of infection got off in Hong Kong. Upon returning to Yokohama, the ship was prohibited from entering the port. Japanese experts began to check passengers for the presence of the virus, quarantine was introduced. As a result, the diagnosis was confirmed in more than 500 people.

The number of patients with the new coronavirus worldwide exceeded 78 thousand, more than 2,400 people became victims of the disease. In two months, the virus has spread to more than 30 countries.

In Italy, in particular, 112 cases of the disease were recorded. This was announced by the head of Lombardy Attilio Fontana. He said that the last sick was a 17-year-old student of an agricultural institute in the city of Valtellina, who was hospitalized with fever. In total, the virus was detected in five regions of the country.

In this regard, the Italian Council of Ministers at an emergency meeting adopted a decree with measures to contain the epidemiological emergency. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced his readiness to establish checkpoints and involve the armed forces if necessary.

He added that the authorities are counting on an understanding of citizens who will have to "suffer inconvenience within a couple of weeks."

“Entry and exit will be prohibited in outbreak areas, with the exception of certain exceptions, which will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. In these areas, the suspension of work and mass events and studies is already envisaged, ”Conte said.

Nevertheless, the prime minister explained that Italy does not intend to seek the suspension of the Schengen agreement due to the outbreak of coronavirus. Conte noted that such an opportunity is provided, but at the moment this is not necessary.

Also on russian.rt.com RT map: in which countries a new coronavirus is detected

Meanwhile, Chinese scientists reported that the transmission of a new type of coronavirus from person to person could begin as early as November 2019, and not at the end of December, as previously reported. Specialists from the tropical botanical garden at the Chinese Academy of Sciences said that this is how the virus entered the seafood market in Wuhan. Experts also said that the spread of the disease went along at least three routes.

“A new type of coronavirus entered the Huanan seafood market from another place, quickly spreading both in the market and beyond,” the scientists noted.

It is worth noting that earlier, AFP, citing certain sources in the US State Department, stated that a number of accounts connected with Russia were allegedly conducting a campaign on disinformation about coronavirus on social networks.

An official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, responded to the publication.

“Intentional stuffing,” Zakharova emphasized.