Russia has extended its suspension of flights to and from Britain due to the new U.K. coronavirus strain until February 1.
The Russian government's operative group to prevent the spread of the coronavirus said on January 12 that the suspension of flights, which was introduced on December 22, was made "to ensure the protection of public health."
The move comes two days after Russia, which has the fourth-highest number of COVID-19 cases in the world, confirmed its first case of the new coronavirus strain, saying that a person returning to Russia from the United Kingdom was found to have been infected with it.
As of January 12, the number of registered coronavirus cases in Russia was 3,448,203, including 62,804 deaths.
RFE/RL's Coronavirus Crisis Archive
Features and analysis, videos, and infographics explore how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the countries in our region.
