Coronavirus: Russia closes its borders to face the pandemic

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Two deaths were recorded outside Moscow this Saturday March 28: in Saint Petersburg and Orenburg, a city in the south near Kazakhstan. In its fight against Covid-19, the Russian authorities announced the closure of the borders from Monday.

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With our correspondent in Moscow, Etienne Bouche

The spread of the virus is accelerating in Russia where more than 1,200 cases have been formalized. The border closure will therefore take effect at midnight Monday. According to the decree signed by the Prime Minister, Mikhaïl Michoustine, it is a question of " temporarily restricting the traffic " of all the border posts, as well road as railway and maritime.

The government intends to prevent the introduction into Russia of new cases of infection. The border with Belarus is also affected by this measure, a sign that Moscow intends to apply a particularly strict regime, since the border between these two countries usually crosses without customs control.

This decision comes after the suspension of all air links - except for flights intended to repatriate Russian citizens abroad.

Inside the country, there is also talk of repatriation. The closure of hotels and sanatoriums is wreaking havoc in the south of the country. This is particularly the case in the seaside town of Sochi, by the Black Sea, where tourists are ordered to pack their bags.

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• Russia
• Coronavirus
• Health and Medicine

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