All Government-imposed coronavirus measures aimed at the safety and health of Ukrainians. This was emphasized at a briefing on March 17.

Deputy Minister of Health of Ukraine Viktor Liashko announced that on March 16, the Government adopted a number of decisions regarding the restriction of passenger conveyance and mass events, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine today adopted a bill to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

“We are thinking ahead. All preventive measures taken by the Government are aimed at ensuring the safety and health of Ukrainians. Also to ensure Ukraine’s smooth passage of this unusual and complicated coronavirus outbreak, ” the Chief Sanitary Doctor of Ukraine said.

He once again reminded that the main protection against coronavirus infection is compliance with personal hygiene rules, minimizing contact and keeping distance from each other, therefore banning passenger transportation, closing subways, public facilities and more.

Viktor Liashko called on Ukrainians to be receptive to inconvenience and to follow the established rules for  own safety inter alia to stay at home, not to leave homes without a special need, if possible to work remotely, and to inform a doctor if there is a slightest suspicion of infection.

Deputy Foreign Minister Yehor Bozhok said that due to the cancellation of international flights, all Ukrainians who are abroad and who wish to return home will be brought home. He urged citizens abroad to contact the embassies or consulates of the host country, or to register with the FRIEND system. The Ukrainians being quarantined in Egypt will be returned after its completion. "The work is going on, all forces are directed to leave no Ukrainian citizen without attention," the Deputy Minister said.

Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine Vladyslav Kryklii informed that starting from March 17 transportation of passengers by subway is suspended in Kyiv (from 11 p.m,), Kharkiv (from 8 p.m.) and Dnipro (from 3 p.m.).

From the noon March 18, passenger transportation by rail is terminated in all types of internal connections (suburban, urban, regional and long-distance). All flights scheduled before 12:00 will be completed.

According to the Vladyslav Kryklii, the Ministry of Infrastructure in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ukrzaliznytsia is working on the possibility of returning Ukrainians from abroad not only by aviation but also by rail, in particular, from Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland.

The Minister also urged airlines to comply with the Chicago Convention and not cancel flights, if tickets have already been sold, especially not to speculate on the situation and not increase the cost of flights. “Dear air carriers, if you sell tickets, you have to ensure air transportation of passengers. In any case, we will bring them back home  but if we return them at our own expense, we will file claims to compensate for these funds. So do not speculate on this, do not increase the cost, ” the Minister said.

He placed a special emphasis on the Government decision approved yesterday which sets price ceiling for air services related to bringing citizens back home.

Vladyslav Kryklii also stressed that all information regarding transportation will be constantly updated on the website of the Ministry of Infrastructure.

Apart from that, according to the Minister of Infrastructure, among the measures designed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in accordance with the decision of the Government, Ukrposhta, in addition to pensions and social benefits, will also deliver medicines to the citizens in case of necessity.