Ukraine not going into second lockdown so far – PM Shmyhal

Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal said this at a government meeting on November 4, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“We all see that many countries in Europe and the world are going into a second national lockdown. France, Germany, the UK, Italy, the Czech Republic have already imposed hard restrictions, despite the fact that these countries have very powerful medical systems and resources. We are not going to follow this path and introduce a national lockdown. But if we see a further deterioration of the situation, it will force the Government to resort to tougher restrictions,” Shmyhal emphasized.

For its part, the Government will continue to do everything possible to ensure that Ukraine's healthcare system can provide assistance to anyone in need. For this purpose, the Government is increasing the number of testing and beds, and is actively working to supply beds with oxygen systems, the PM assured.

"Last week, an additional UAH 600 million was allocated for these needs. Another UAH 1 billion was allocated from the Coronavirus Response Fund for tests. We are talking about the purchase of 2 million quick tests, using which the result can be obtained in minutes. This decision is one of many that we take every week to support our medical system," the head of government recalled.

As of November 4, 420,617 COVID-19 cases were laboratory confirmed in Ukraine, including 9,524 cases recorded during the previous day.

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