President says tough quarantine in Ukraine in Jan justifies itself

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says the tough quarantine measures introduced from January 8 to January 24 have justified themselves.

He announced this in a video address posted on Telegram on January 25.

"Today we've got the lockdown lifted, the enhanced quarantine is over in our country. I want, firstly, to congratulate all of us, and secondly, to thank everyone. Together with you, thanks to personal responsibility, attention and discipline, we were able to achieve good results," he said.

"It can be stated that this lockdown has justified itself, and ... it was quite short and rather liberal compared with other European countries. We did not place cities on [full] lockdown, public transport was operating, there was no state of emergency or curfews," he said.

According to Zelensky, unlike many European countries, there was no outbreak of the infection in Ukraine after the winter holidays, and during the lockdown, the number of those who recovered was higher than those who fell ill.

Read alsoLifting tough curbs: Which COVID-19 measures remain in effect as of Jan 25

He recalled that another 14,000 beds were also equipped for COVID-19 patients, and now there are almost 70,000 such beds.

According to him, 70% of them are vacant, and more than 80% are provided with oxygen.

Tough quarantine in Ukraine

• The Ukrainian government on December 9 decided to put Ukraine on tough quarantine for the period from January 8 to January 24, 2021.
• The restrictions were imposed on arts and entertainment events (concerts, performances, exhibitions, as well as on cinemas); entertainment establishments (discos and nightclubs, including a ban on the rent of premises for any corporate events); educational institutions (schools and universities), except for kindergartens; accommodation facilities, except for hotels and rehabilitation centers.
• The ban was also imposed on the work of gyms, fitness centers, swimming pools (except in outdoor settings and for professional teams), while holding professional sports events is allowed with empty stands.
• Catering establishments were allowed to work for takeaway or delivery only, while beauty salons were obliged to receive clients by appointment without making them wait in lines indoors.
• State and municipal institutions switched to remote work.
• Public transport was functioning.