FEB. 9 2021 (The Bulletin) — Armenian President Armen Sargsyan, who caught the coronavirus on a trip to London over the Christmas period, returned to Yerevan. Mr Sargsyan was hospitalised for a brief period when he was ill with Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.
— ENDS
— This story was first published in issue 471 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin
— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021
FEB. 2 2021 (The Bulletin) — Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev criticised the West for what he said was the “unequal distribution” of vaccinations for the Covid-19 disease. Mr Aliyev said that the prioritisation of vaccines for populations in Western countries showed that a “neo-colonial” mindset was predominant. Azerbaijan has ordered vaccines from Western pharmaceuticals companies, from China and from Russia. It has just started its own trials of the Oxford-Astrazeneca vaccine.
— ENDS
— This story was first published in issue 471 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin
— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021
FEB. 1 2021 (The Bulletin) — Tajikistan’s government said that it has defeated the coronavirus as there hadn’t been any recorded cases of the virus for three weeks. It immediately ordered the reopening of mosques which had been closed since April as a lockdown precaution. Tajikistan has recorded 90 Covid-19-linked deaths. Analysts said that the real figure was likely to be far higher.
— ENDS
— This story was first published in issue 471 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin
— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021
JAN. 22 2021 (The Bulletin) –Georgia’s government said that after a compulsory coronavirus lockdown, shops will be allowed to reopen from Feb. 1 and that a month later, on March 1, schools and public transport will restart operations. Georgia had been praised for its tough initial lockdown but had to redouble efforts in the autumn after a far worse-than-expected second wave.
— ENDS
— This story was first published in issue 469 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin
— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021
JAN. 18 2021 (The Bulletin) — Azerbaijan will start vaccinating its population against Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, from Feb. 1 using China’s Sinovac vaccine. The country’s health ministry said that it would vaccinate medical workers and the over 65s first. Kazakhstan also said that it would start its own vaccination plan from Feb. 1 using Russia’s Sputnik-V.
— ENDS
— This story was first published in issue 469 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin
— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021
JAN. 15 2021 (The Bulletin) –Kyrgyz deputy PM Elvira Surabaldiyeva said that the actual number of people who have died from Covid-19 in Kyrgyzstan may be several times higher than the official death toll of 1,400. Analysts and medical experts said for much of 2020 that Kyrgyzstan was downplaying the impact of the coronavirus.
— ENDS
— This story was first published in issue 469 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin
— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021
JAN. 6 2021 (The Bulletin) — Kyrgyzstan’s government published a 40-point plan to improve the air quality in Bishkek after meters recorded it as being the worst in the world this winter. The cold winter air traps fumes generated by old cars bought in Europe, smoggy heating systems and the city’s waste dump. Smog has cloaked the city and obscured the famously blue skies for weeks. Analysts have said previous plans to improve air quality have failed because of corruption.
— ENDS
— This story was first published in issue 467 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin
— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021
JAN. 5 2021 (The Bulletin) — Uzbekistan Airways flew the first charter flight between Tashkent and Dushanbe since March when flights were suspended because of the intensifying coronavirus pandemic. The return of the Tashkent – Dushanbe route is an important signifier that internal routes in Central Asia are beginning to return to normal.
— ENDS
— This story was first published in issue 467 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin
— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021
JAN. 5 2021 (The Bulletin) — Alymkadyr Beishenaliev, Kyrgyzstan’s health minister, said that the coronavirus has already ripped through the Kyrgyz population and that something close to herd immunity has been reached. Kyrgyzstan has imposed only a handful of restrictions on people entering the country. People have also mainly ignored facemask wearing and social distancing campaigns.
— ENDS
— This story was first published in issue 467 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin
— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021
DEC. 26 2020 (The Bulletin) — Turkmen President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov said that chewing liquorice is a cure for Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Mr Berdymukhamedov made the statement in televised remarks to his ministers. Turkmenistan is one of the only countries in the world to still deny that it has had any cases of the coronavirus.
— ENDS
— This story was first published in issue 467 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin
— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021