Opinions & Interviews

Lukashenko on situation with coronavirus: There is a glimmer of hope

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LIDA DISTRICT, 17 April (BelTA) – The country is coping with the situation caused by the spread of coronavirus, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko said during his working trip to Grodno Oblast on 17 April, BelTA informs.

“The main thing is that we are coping with it right now. Today we have seen a little glimmer of hope, especially in Minsk. The number of discharged patients is bigger than the number of hospitalized patients. The main thing is that we have prevented an outbreak,” the head of state said.

Addressing Governor of Grodno Oblast Vladimir Kravtsov, the president said: “I know that the situation here is better than in other regions. It is good. But you should not relax because you see that this COVID-19 has turned into politics. I have expected that,” Aleksandr Lukashenko remarked.

The head of state noted that some people, including abroad, sometimes criticize Belarus for not fighting against coronavirus the way others are doing. “At the same time, they don’t know how we are living here and how we are fighting. Especially our eastern brothers are concerned… Therefore, we should not relax. We have very few friends, even sympathizers in the world,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said. “They say we have chosen a wrong path. A system is need to choose Belarus’ path. However, even other post-Soviet republics have ruined the system completely. Infectious diseases hospitals were closed, specialists departed, no one trained microbiologists, virologists, epidemiologists. Now they are reaping the fruits and throwing stones at us.”

Aleksandr Lukashenko praised the fact that Belarusian specialists had begun to produce coronavirus tests. And they appeared to be more precise than certain foreign tests.

The head of state emphasized that Belarus is committed to the chosen path as far as the efforts to stop the spread of coronavirus are concerned. “Targeted measures are very demanding and expensive. Without isolating people, issuing passes, when Moscow was locked down completely,” the Belarusian leader said.

The president urged to pay special attention to the incidences of pneumonia which include the consequences of coronavirus contagion. Any delays in treatment can cause serious complications. In this regard, the president once again thanked doctors.

“It is quite surprising. I have joked that a tractor will heal, and village people are safe and sound,” the head of state noted.

The president recalled the need to keep an eye on the economy. “Keep an eye on the economy, we must prevent a collapse of production,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said. The same pertains to agriculture. “Pneumonia will fade away, and we will need bread. I do not even worry about villages. We will cope with it. And the manufacturing sector… Everything has been stopped around us,” he added.

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