Excerpts from the transcript of Mikhail Mishustin’s opening remarks at a Government meeting on 30 January 2020.
Government meeting
Mikhail Mishustin: I
would like to say a few words about a very important subject, the spread of the
new contagion, coronavirus. Up until now, no cases of the deadly disease have
been recorded in Russia. Nevertheless, we must do everything we can to protect
our people. The President has chaired a meeting devoted to this subject. We are
reporting on a daily basis to him. I have also held a meeting on a set of
measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus and on the readiness of our
healthcare system to provide medical assistance, if necessary. To coordinate
these efforts, I have signed a document to establish a crisis centre, which is
headed by Tatyana Golikova. The centre is working around the clock.
Mikhail Mishustin at the Government meeting
I would like to point out once again that people’s health is of utmost importance to us. Ms Golikova, I would like to ask you to issue daily updates about the situation and the measures being taken by the Government, so that the people have sufficient information, including those who are returning from China and have been requested to undergo the necessary medical procedures aimed at controlling the spread of the virus. I would also like to ask Rospotrebnadzor head Anna Popova to contribute to this information effort. A directive regarding this has been issued today. We will provide information about the measures to seal the border in Russia’s Far Eastern region and other measures taken by the Government.
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