The death toll from the coronavirus infection in the world reached 317,000, over 4.77 million cases of infection were detected, and over 1.61 million of those patients were cured, according to the US-based Johns Hopkins University, which tracks and compiles data from federal and local authorities, media and other sources
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th May, 2020) The death toll from the coronavirus infection in the world reached 317,000, over 4.77 million cases of infection were detected, and over 1.61 million of those patients were cured, according to the US-based Johns Hopkins University, which tracks and compiles data from federal and local authorities, media and other sources.
As of 21.00 GMT Monday, the number of people infected globally is 4,775,000, of them 317,515 died.
The United States still has the highest case count in the world, with 1,500,753, including 90,312 fatalities and 272,265 recoveries.
The foreign ministers of Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Spain and Slovenia voiced support for a gradual and coordinated restoration of the freedom of movement across the European Union, which has taken a hit due to border closures amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Belgian government reopened on Monday schools and museums as part of the new phase of the relaxation of COVID-19 lockdown amid steady decline in new infections.
The Parisian authorities have been banned from deploying drones to control the process of lifting the COVID-19 lockdown and monitor the citizens' compliance with social distancing rules, as they represent a threat to personal privacy, the State Council, France's highest administrative court, ruled.
Germany is expected to lift its international travel warning adopted to halt the spread of COVID-19 on June 15, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said.
A further eight airports in Spain have been added to a list of transport hubs that will be able to accept commercial flights from abroad, Transport Minister Jose Luis Abalos said.
People in the UK capital of London must avoid any unnecessary travel, particularly on public transport, in order to prevent a second wave of the coronavirus disease outbreak in the city, Mayor Sadiq Khan said.
Top officials from Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia and Romania will hold a Tuesday meeting to discuss the resumption of travel between the countries, Greek government spokesman Stelios Petsas said.
Armenia's capital of Yerevan is set to reopen preschools and kindergartens starting May 20 as the country gradually reemerges from the lockdown despite the remaining coronavirus threat, deputy mayor Tigran Virabyan said.
Laos reopened its schools and resumed interregional travel after nearly two months of the COVID-19 lockdown, the government said.
The city of Shulan in China's Jilin province introduced more strident lockdown measures on Monday in response to a fresh cluster of the new coronavirus disease, local authorities said.
Germany and France suggest that the European Union should work on its "strategic health sovereignty" through a joint strategy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron said in a joint statement.
Israel, supported by the US administration, is trying to implement plans to annex parts of the West Bank by taking advantage of the difficult epidemiological situation amid the coronavirus pandemic, Palestinian Ambassador to Moscow Abdel Hafiz Nofal said.
The economy of the Bahamas, which is largely dependent on tourism, is suffering because of closed international borders amid the coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Huber Minnis said.
The Scottish topflight soccer league, the Scottish Premiership, has canceled the remainder of the 2019/20 season as a result of the coronavirus disease outbreak, league officials said.
China's air pollution has reached the pre-lockdown level for the first time since the coronavirus-related restrictions were lifted, the Finland-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) said.
More than 18,000 prisoners have been released in the Philippines since mid-March as in efforts to prevent the coronavirus from spreading among the prison population, the Supreme Court said.
The White House is considering the possibility that a fourth-phase stimulus will not be needed to rescue the United States from the negative impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic as signs of economic recovery were already in the works, President Donald Trump's Senior Economic Adviser Kevin Hassett said.
China will provide $2 billion over two years to assist the global COVID-19 response and socioeconomic development of the affected countries, President Xi Jinping saidю
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a statement that it had approved for immediate release of $280 million to Armenia amid the crisis caused by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
The United Kingdom government has announced a new Infection Control Fund worth 600 million pounds ($730 million) to tackle the coronavirus disease outbreak in the country's care homes, the Department of Health and Social Care said amid criticism of the Conservative Party's handling of the epidemiological crisis.
The United Kingdom's COVID-19 contact tracing application, which is currently being piloted on the Isle of Wight, will likely be delayed until June, national media reported.
The French government has prepared plans to support the aviation and automotive industries, which have been heavily affected by the coronavirus pandemic, Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said.
Russian biosecurity watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor said it canceled restrictions on imports of live fish, as well as exotic animals, from China into Russia, which had been introduced early this year due to the coronavirus epidemic.
The Chinese government is ready to improve cooperation with the Syrian government on fighting the novel coronavirus disease, acting Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Yao Shaojun said.
The African Union (AU) is calling for assistance for developing countries amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which should include debt relief and medical supplies, Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africa's president and AU chairperson, said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping also stressed the need to help developing African nations fight the coronavirus pandemic during his address to the World Health Assembly.
FIFA plans to organize a charity football match to raise funds to help global efforts against the coronavirus pandemic.
Tehran is grateful to Moscow for sending it coronavirus testing kits on the onset of the coronavirus epidemic and now stands ready to ship medical supplies to help Russia counter the virus, Iranian Ambassador in Moscow Kazem Jalali said.
All Russian servicemen engaged in assisting Serbia's COVID-19 response have returned to their homeland, the Russian Defense Ministry said.
The work continues on the idea to send lung ventilators from the United States to Russia, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said.
US President Donald Trump said big announcements related to a COVID-19 vaccine would be made soon. He also told reporters that he was taking hydroxychloroquine as a preventive measure against the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
The vaccine against the coronavirus infection must become a "global public good" obtained via a coordinated effort by all stakeholders, including the World Health Organization (WHO), French President Emmanuel Macron said.
The Russian government has allocated more than 94 million rubles ($1.3 million) to consumer rights watchdog Rospotrebnadzor to finance the production of diagnostic tools for coronavirus to help countries in Europe, Asia and Africa, according to a document published on the legal information portal.
Russia's N.F. Gamaleya Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology is testing its vaccine against COVID-19 on a small sample of volunteers, its director Alexander Gintsburg said.
The Netherlands supports Costa Rica's initiative for a pool that would bring together patents, test data and other information about the coronavirus, Hugo de Jonge, the Dutch minister of health, welfare and sport, said.
Germany will not have mandatory vaccination for everyone over the coronavirus pandemic, the government's spokesperson Ulrike Demmer said.
The US government sees China's newly announced payment to the World Health Organization (WHO) as an attempt to distract from Beijing's failure in handling the COVID-19 outbreak, White House National Security Council spokesman John Ullyot said.
The World Health Organization (WHO) failed to obtain the necessary information on the COVID-19 pandemic and needs to become more transparent in the future, US Secretary of Health Alex Azar said.
US Senator Rob Portman said that he would soon introduce a legislation to protect American research and intellectual property from what he described are attempts at theft by China.
The World Health Organization (WHO) remains the legitimate global body working on matters of health and wellbeing and the international community must ensure that the organization is funded sustainably, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said.
Swiss President Simonetta Sommaruga confirmed on Monday the country's commitment to the World Health Organization (WHO), adding that Switzerland is working on setting up a global coalition for boosting the health security.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in called on Monday for updating the World Health Organization (WHO)'s International Health Regulations and other norms, augmenting them with binding legal force, pointing to the possibility of new infectious diseases emerging.
China has been transparent, responsible and prompt in its response to the coronavirus and sharing the information with other countries, Chinese President Xi Jinping said.
The alliance of countries that have responded to Australia's call to launch an independent investigation into what had caused the coronavirus pandemic has grown to 116, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said.
