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Nearly 1,500 Russian servicemen diagnosed with coronavirus — defense ministry

Most those who contracted the virus have not shown any symptoms, while seven people are in moderately grave condition

MOSCOW, May 23. /TASS/. The number of coronavirus cases in the Russian army and military academies exceeds 2,100, including among 1,457 servicemen, the Russian Defense Ministry said in its bulletin on Saturday.

"As of May 23, some 1,457 servicemen tested positive for [the coronavirus] in the military command, formations, divisions and units," the ministry said.

Among those who recovered are 1,204 servicemen, 1,542 cadets, 308 students of pre-universities, as well as 178 civilian personnel.

Most those who contracted the virus have not shown any symptoms, while seven people are in moderately grave condition.

In late December 2019, Chinese officials notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about the outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, in central China. Since then, cases of the novel coronavirus - named COVID-19 by the WHO - have been reported in every corner of the globe, including Russia.

On March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. According to the latest statistics, over 5.1 mln people have been infected worldwide and more than 330,00 deaths have been reported. To date, a total of 335,882 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia, with 107,936 patients having recovered from the disease. Russia’s latest data indicates 3,388 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.

Russia's defense industry

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