No respite for Eurasia as virus cases, deaths mount

By Ruslan Rehimov and Aliia Raimbekova

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AA) – Multiple fatalities and more than 1,200 coronavirus cases were reported in several Eurasian countries on Wednesday.

- Ukraine

Eight more fatalities raised the death toll in Ukraine to 735, while the total number of COVID-19 cases reached 24,800.

Health Minister Maksim Stepanov said 483 new cases were registered over the past 24 hours, including 103 health workers and 44 children.

A total of 10,440 patients have recovered in the country so far, he said.

- Moldova

Two more patients died in Moldova, raising the death toll to 309, while the number of cases increased to 8,548, according to the Health Ministry.

The number of recoveries climbed to 4,863, as 125 patients were discharged from several hospitals.

A total of 24 more COVID-19 cases were confirmed in Moldova’s autonomous region of Gagauzia, bringing the total to 505.

- Kazakhstan

The number of cases in Kazakhstan rose by 225 to 11,796, including 44 deaths and 5,941 recoveries.

Beibut Atamkulov, minister of industry and infrastructure development, said Turkey-Kazakhstan flights are expected to resume on June 20.

- Uzbekistan

In Uzbekistan, 10 more people tested positive for COVID-19, raising the overall count to 3,769, including 15 deaths.

A total of 2,908 patients have recovered so far and 846 are under treatment, while about 47,000 people remain under medical surveillance.

- Kyrgyzstan

Three more fatalities raised the coronavirus death toll in Kyrgyzstan to 20, according to Deputy Health Minister Nurbolat Usenbaev.

He said 26 new cases took the country’s total to 1,871, while recoveries have reached 1,265.

A total of 506 patients are being treated at hospitals, 2,380 are under surveillance, and 7,713 are in home quarantine, the minister added.

- Armenia

In Armenia, 515 more people tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the overall case count to 10,524.

According to the Health Ministry, 12 fatalities over the past 24 hours pushed the death toll up to 170, while recoveries rose to 3,454.

A total of 6,841 patients are receiving treatment at various hospitals in the country.

The number of COVID-19 tests conducted in Armenia stands at 61,650, the ministry said.

- Georgia

In Georgia, four new COVID-19 cases raised the total to 803, including 13 deaths and 604 recoveries.

- Worldwide

Over 6.40 million cases have been reported in 188 countries and regions since the virus emerged in China last December.

The US, Brazil, and Russia are currently the hardest-hit countries in the world.

According to the World Health Organization, Latin America has become the “red zone” of coronavirus transmissions in the world, as four of the 10 countries with the highest number of COVID-19 cases are located in the region.

The pandemic has claimed nearly 380,700 lives worldwide, while recoveries are now close to 2.75 million, according to figures compiled by the US’ Johns Hopkins University.

* Writing by Jeyhun Aliyev from Ankara