Georgian gov’t ready to support Russia-occupied Tskhinvali, Abkhazia amid coronavirus outbreak

State Minister for Reconciliation and Civic Equality of Georgia Ketevan Tsikhelashvili has urged the residents of the Russia-occupied Abkhazia and Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) regions to follow recommendations of the World Health Organization, saying that the Georgian government is ready help them prevent the spread of COVID-19 if the need arises.

We have translated into Abkhaz and Ossetian languages all the recommendations published by the World Health Organisation and Georgia’s National Centre for Disease Control and we will try to provide more useful information for the population living in the occupied territories… Under the occupation and without direct control it is not easy to implement effective measures in terms of preventing the residents from the virus, but, with the help of our partners, we are ready to help our citizens. Our main priority is to take care of them”, said Tsikhelashvili.

• Occupied Tskhinvali requests medical products from Russia

Earlier in March the Russian controlled Tskhinvali region requested ‘vital medical products’ from Russia amid Russia’s recent temporary ban on various medical products, including face masks.

De facto Tskhinvali said that there was a lack of face masks in the region, with the price of those in stock having already increased 20 times.

On March 3 Tskhinvali closed the so-called border with 60 countries, excluding Russia, to prevent the spread of coronavirus – COVID-19.