SINGAPORE, March 20. /TASS/: Russia’s embassy in Indonesia is considering sending charter flights to facilitate the evacuation of Russian nationals, the diplomatic mission told TASS on Friday.
"The embassy has sent a note to the local Foreign Ministry requesting it to urgently extend permission to stay in the country for Russians, who have been forced to remain there due to the cancellation of most flights to Russia," the mission said.
"However, Indonesian authorities have not taken this step, explaining that Indonesia has not banned exit, paying no attention to the current situation with the cancellation of most flights," it noted.
The embassy has requested "an urgent evacuation of Russians by sending one or two charter flights."
Currently, most Russians or up to 8,000 people are staying in Indonesia’s Bali Island.
As of now some 308 coronavirus cases have been recorded in Indonesia, with 25 deaths, what is the highest rate in Southeast Asia.
The coronavirus outbreak was registered in central China in late December 2019. On March 11, the World Health Organization declared it a pandemic. COVID-19 infection cases have been recorded in more than 140 countries. According to the latest data, over 210,000 people have contracted the virus and about 8,500 have died.
