Update – 30.07.2020

July 30, 2020

On Thursday, July 30^th, Russia recorded 5,509 new cases of coronavirus in 84 Russian regions, raising the official number of positive results to 834,499, with 13,802 fatalities. Most of the new COVID-19 cases (678) were registered in Moscow, raising the total number of Muscovites with confirmed COVID-19 to 240,664. In the meantime, a total number of 629,655 Russian patients are known to have recovered. Russia is moving along a path which should see all coronavirus restrictions lifted by February, said Russian Minister of Health, Mikhail Murashko. President Vladimir Putin said the country’s coronavirus outbreak had stabilized, but warned that the situation remains difficult and could easily deteriorate.

On Friday, July 24^th, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin announced that international flights with Russia will resume from August 1^st. From this day onwards, the first international flights will start operating from Moscow, St. Petersburg and Rostov-on-Don airports. The Prime Minister added that this will speed up the return of Russians who are stranded abroad due to the suspension of air traffic brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. To begin with, air connectivity will be resumed with the UK, Turkey and Tanzania, said Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova. The Operational Headquarters for the fight against coronavirus, headed by Golikova, are working on expanding the list of the above countries. Therefore, from August 1^st, it will be possible to fly to London, Ankara and Istanbul, and from August 10^th – to the resort cities of Antalya, Bodrum and Dalaman. Flights to Tanzania (specifically Zanzibar) will also be resumed. According to the Head of the Ministry of Transport, Yevgeny Dietrich, over 30 countries are currently negotiating the mutual opening of borders and the resumption of flights.

Russia’s coronavirus vaccine could be administered to civilians as soon as August 15^th, according to the state-run Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology. The source said that the Ministry of Health plans to register the vaccine, which is still undergoing clinical trials, between August 10^th to12^th. People from high risk groups – including teachers, doctors and more – as well as over 1,500 volunteers, will be among the first to receive the vaccine. The source allotted 5 to 6 months to finally confirm its effectiveness and safety. After that, the vaccine will enter civil circulation, initially in January-February 2021.

Insurance companies have reported which countries Russian tourists are already booking tours to, besides Turkey. In total, tourists have recently been insured for travel to 60 destinations. Almost half of them – specifically 47% – preferred travel within Russia. Schengen Area countries claim second place – they were chosen by 16% of travellers. 7% of tourists are insured for travels around the world.

The online booking service, Tutu.ru, interviewed Russian travelers on what kind of vacation they are currently dreaming about. 39% of them would very much like to be at the seaside. 22% of respondents would prefer to get away from the crowds in a village or in their country houses (dacha). The third most popular type of vacation is the active outdoor kind: 12% of respondents dream of river rafting, trekking, horseback riding and cycling. 9% of respondents voted for urban tourism and sightseeing. 5% admitted that they have chosen to relax at home on the couch instead of going anywhere. 3% of tourists feel the need for SPA and wellness treatments. Every tenth person said that they have not planned for any vacation yet, as they must work.

On Thursday, July 30^th, Kazakhstan recorded 1472 new cases of coronavirus, raising the official number of positive cases to 87,664, with 793 fatalities.

On Wednesday, July 29^th, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, ordered the extension of quarantine restrictions imposed due to the coronavirus, for another two weeks. The total number of people infected in Kazakhstan has stabilized at the level of 1.5-1.6 thousand people per day. President Tokayev noted: “The workload of hospitals fell by 43%, including by 27% in intensive care wards. The number of those recovered increased to 63%, while the number of ambulance calls declined”.

On Tuesday, July 28^th, Kazakh Minister of Health, Aleksey Tsoi, said that from August 3^rd some of the restrictive measures which were introduced to contain the spread of coronavirus will be eased. He noted that from August 3^rd, if conditions for improvement are met, including a reduction in the total number of the infected, hospital bed occupancy of less than 70% and a decrease in mortality, then the operation of shopping malls and entertainment centers, the operation of children’s leisure centers and classes for up to 5 people and visits to beauty salons by appointment, will be allowed. Remote work should be retained at 80% for government officials and office workers. According to Tsoi, public transport should operate in compliance with time limits and an occupancy of no more than 50%.

On Thursday, July 30^th, Ukraine has set a new record of coronavirus infection at 1,197 new cases per day. The largest increase was registered in Kiev with 199 infected, in the Lviv region (131) and Rivne region (105). On July 29^th, the Ministry of Health of Ukraine named ten regions which are not ready to ease the quarantine imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 68,794 cases have been identified in the country, with 1,673 fatalities. 38,154 of infected cases have recovered.

In Ukraine, from August 1^st, new quarantine restriction rules will come into effect. This was announced on Wednesday, July 29^th, by the country’s Minister of Health Maxim Stepanov during a briefing in Kiev. According to the new rules, the mildest restrictive measures will be introduced in the “green zone” – including a mask regime, social distancing (one person per 5 sq. m. in public places), occupancy of cinemas and theaters at no more than 50% and only the seating area to be occupied in the public transport.

Ukrainian authorities have already spent 10% of their total funds to combat the coronavirus infection, Prime Minister Denis Shmyhal said on Tuesday. Earlier, the Cabinet of Ministers proposed making changes to this year’s state budget, which would allow cuts in funding for a number of areas, as well as the creation of a fund to combat COVID-19 to amount to an estimated $ 2.4 billion, instead of the previously planned $ 3.4 billion.

Currently, Ukrainians can go on vacation to Bulgaria, Turkey, Egypt, Montenegro and Croatia. However, in Bulgaria and Croatia, it is necessary to present a certificate with a negative test result for coronavirus, and those who return from Montenegro will face a 14-day self-isolation in Ukraine. This was announced by the Minister of Infrastructure, Vladislav Krikliy.

Sources:

https://t.me/COVID2019_official

Who we are