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PM orders to cancel bookings at Russian health resorts, close food services

The prime minister has also ordered regional authorities to recommend citizens to limit trips, including for the purposes of tourism and rest

© Dmitry Astakhov/POOL/TASS

MOSCOW, March 27. /TASS/. Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin has ordered to temporarily suspend accommodation at health resorts and the work of resort facilities as well as food services as a measure to fight the coronavirus.

"The federal state bodies <...> have been ordered to temporarily suspend bookings, hosting and accommodating citizens at recreation centers, health resorts and sanatoriums from March 28, 2020 until June 1, 2020," the decree published on the government’s website said.

The executive bodies in Russian regions have been asked to suspend ski slopes, mass recreation facilities located in the resorts of federal, regional and local importance.

The food services organizations, except for distance selling, will be shut down from March 28 until April 5.

The prime minister has also ordered regional authorities to recommend citizens to limit trips, including for the purposes of tourism and rest.

In late December 2019, Chinese authorities notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about the outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, central China. Since then, cases of the novel coronavirus - named COVID-19 by the WHO - have been reported in more than 150 countries.

On March 11, the WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. As of now, a total of 462,684 people have contracted the coronavirus and 20,834 people have died globally, according to the latest WHO data. Russia has recorded 840 coronavirus cases, 38 people have recovered and have been discharged from hospitals, and two people have died.

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FACTBOX: Collective Security Treaty Organization

The Collective Security Treaty came into force on April 20, 1994 to herald the emergence what would eventually become the Collective Security Treaty Organization. The six member-countries are Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan