Europe

MOSCOW, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Russia is going to suspend border crossings via automobile, railway, pedestrian and other border checkpoints from Monday in a bid to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus, the Russian government said Saturday in a statement.

BERLIN (AP) — In her first address to the nation on the coronavirus pandemic, German Chancellor Angela Merkel calmly appealed to citizens’ reason and discipline to slow the spread of the virus, acknowledging as a woman who grew up in communist East Germany how difficult it is to give up freedoms, yet as a trained scientist emphasizing that the facts don’t lie.

LONDON (AP) — Another member of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Cabinet has developed symptoms of COVID-19, as the number of people with the coronovrius to die in the U.K. passed the 1,000 mark Saturday.

Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said he had symptoms of the disease and was self-isolating a day after the prime minister and Britain’s health secretary revealed they tested positive for the virus and were experiencing mild symptoms.

MOSCOW, March 27. /TASS/: The issue of lifting unilateral sanctions becomes especially topical amid the rapid spread of the coronavirus infection, the Russian foreign ministry said on Friday.

MOSCOW, March 28. /TASS/: The Akademik Chersky pipe-laying vessel, which can potentially complete the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project according to Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak, continues to sail west. The vessel left the port of Nakhodka in the Russian Far East and is currently sailing around Africa, heading to the Atlantic. The current direction of travel is Pointe-Noire (Congo), myshiptracking portal data shows.

MOSCOW, March 28. /TASS/: A special train No. 906/905 travelling from Kiev to Moscow and back to transfer Russians from Ukraine and Ukrainians from Russia home has arrived at Moscow’s Kiev Railway Station, the press service for the Russian Railways’ stations told TASS.

"Yes, it has arrived," the service said.

The train will depart back to Kiev today at 19:35 (local time) and will finish its journey in Kiev on March 29 at 07:32.

CHISINAU, March 27. /TASS/: A shipment of humanitarian aid from Russia has been delivered to Moldova, Russian Ambassador to Chisinau Oleg Vasnetsov told TASS. The shipment particularly contains coronavirus testing systems.

"A charter flight from Moscow delivered the aid shipment," he said.

Moldovan President Igor Dodon earlier thanked Russian authorities for providing the country with tests, medicines and medical equipment.

The same flight brought a group of Moldovan nationals who had been unable to return home due to a state of emergency declared in the country.

MOSCOW, March 28. /TASS/: Russia’s Federal Biomedical Agency has created a tool to safely split ventilators between two to four patients, the agency’s head Veronika Skvortsova told Channel One.

"We have been able to create prototype models that can help ventilate two to three to four patients at once," she said, adding that unlike similar foreign tools, the Russian ventilator had anti-bacterial filters that killed 99.9% of bacteria and viruses.

MOSCOW, March 27. /TASS/: Russia’s Federal Medical Biological Agency has developed seven vaccine prototypes against the novel coronavirus, the agency’s head, Veronika Skvortsova, said on Friday.

"As of today, the Federal Medical Biological Agency has developed seven prototypes of a genetically engineered vaccine assembled from fused proteins, with each of them having epitopes, i.e. parts that interact with the virus," she said in an interview with Russia’s TV ChannelOne.

Berlin, Mar 28 (AFP/PTI) With families across Europe confined to their homes to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus, fears are rising of a surge in domestic violence.

From Berlin to Paris, Madrid, Rome and Bratislava, associations that help victims of domestic violence have sounded the alarm after Europe overtook China to become the epicentre of the pandemic.