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Russia not planning evacuation effort from South Korea amid coronavirus

The Russian Embassy in Seoul said they were just collecting data about nationals in South Korea

© AP Photo/Lee Jin-man

SEOUL, February 27. /TASS/. Russia’s authorities are not planning to evacuate nationals from South Korea amid the novel coronavirus outbreak, although this scenario is not ruled out, the Russian Embassy in Seoul told TASS.

"We are just collecting data about our nationals," a spokesman said. When answering a question whether Russia could evacuate its nationals from South Korea like it did in China’s Wuhan, the diplomat said: "Everything is possible."

According to the latest data, 334 new coronavirus cases have been confirmed in South Korea, reaching a total of 1,595. The death toll has hit 12, South Korea’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported.

Most new cases were registered in Daegu (307) and another six cases were confirmed in Seoul.

Over the past few days, South Korea has seen a sharp rise in the number of those infected with the novel coronavirus. The government decided to postpone the new school year for a week until March 9.

A pneumonia outbreak caused by the COVID-19 virus (previously known as 2019-nCoV) was reported in China’s city of Wuhan, a large trade and industrial center with a population of 12 million, in late December. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak in China a global health emergency, characterizing it as an epidemic with multiple foci.

The cases of the novel coronavirus have also been reported in 42 other countries, including Russia. Authorities in China have registered 2,715 deaths. More than 78,000 people have contracted the virus and another 29,700 have recovered to date.

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