About 35,000-36,000 Russians, stranded abroad amid the coronavirus pandemic, remain on a "waiting list" for repatriation, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with the Russian Kommersant newspaper published on Wednesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th April, 2020) About 35,000-36,000 Russians, stranded abroad amid the coronavirus pandemic, remain on a "waiting list" for repatriation, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with the Russian Kommersant newspaper published on Wednesday.
"According to our estimates, about 35,000-36,000 people, plus-minus 1,000-1,500, who want to be evacuated, remain on the 'waiting list.' As you know, priority is given to those who had arrived in the country of their current stay after 1 January 2020," Lavrov said.
The ministry studies each case individually, taking into account the humanitarian aspect, he said.
"There are people who went there not to spend a few years abroad, but also the ones who, for example, sought treatment or a special surgery, which has been long prepared and which requires postoperative rehabilitation. There are several dozen of such people. Now we are dealing with them, as they say, personally," Lavrov said.
Students, teachers, qualified specialists, employees of foreign offices of Russian companies, participants in cultural and scientific exchanges, mixed families are also among those waiting for evacuation to Russia, the minister added.
Situation with some tourists is even more complicated, as they are "stuck" in remote locations, including Fiji, Seychelles, Guatemala, and African states, Lavrov said.
"Now, together with our colleagues from the Transport Ministry, the Federal Air Transport Agency, and the Communications Ministry, we are working out options to get them out," he said.
