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Coronavirus pandemic

Minsk regrets Russia’s decision to close border with Belarus

According to the statement, "Belarusian citizens who are now abroad have de-facto been nearly deprived of the opportunity to return to their homeland via many countries"

MINSK, March 17. /TASS/. The Belarusian Foreign Ministry regrets Russia’s decision to close the common border amid the coronavirus pandemic and is waiting for detailed official information from Moscow, the ministry spokesman said on Monday.

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"We regret the Russian side’s decision to close the border with Belarus against this background," Andrei Glaz said in a statement. "We are waiting for detailed official information from the Russian side about variants and modalities of implementing the above-mentioned measure."

According to the statement, "Belarusian citizens who are now abroad have de-facto been nearly deprived of the opportunity to return to their homeland via many countries," and Belarusian diplomats are trying to help them.

"Due to the current developments, we recommend Belarusian citizens to refrain from foreign trips," the statement says.

On Monday, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin announced that Russia had decided to close the border with Belarus with the aim to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said later in the day he was puzzled by Russia’s decision and planned to discuss the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone conversation.

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