PM: Russian government has coronavirus situation under control

MOSCOW, Mar 23 (PRIME) – The Russian government controls the coronavirus outbreak, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said on Monday at a meeting with his deputies.

“I think that we are in general in control of the situation with the coronavirus, but we have to prepare for challenges that are more serious,” he said.

The government has issued 23 billion rubles in the past few days on procurements of necessary medical equipment, he said.

“We will also support the companies so that they are able to raise production and output of these products. We will direct subsidies on that through the industry support fund in order to provide working capital to the companies. New investment as well as the existing projects in the sphere will get these subsidies,” he said.

The Industry and Trade Ministry received 10 billion rubles on production and purchase of equipment for diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of epidemic diseases, on personal protective equipment, on medicines and drugs, and medical equipment. The ministry also received 7.5 billion rubles to buy artificial lung ventilation units and 5 billion rubles to buy thermal sensors, remote-sensing thermometers, and air sterilizers.

The government also transferred 492 million rubles to the Federal Medical and Biological Agency for works on prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of the coronavirus.

Mushistin also said that he had ordered the government to work out additional support measures to the economy in order to soften the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

“In the next few days, we are to prepare a list of additional steps that would allow us to cope with this serious threat. The issue here is about new support measures to small and medium-sized businesses, the construction industry, and additional measures for imports substitution,” he said.

GOVERNMENT ORDERS

Mishustin has ordered the Industry and Trade Ministry, the Agriculture Ministry, and the Federal Customs Service to discuss the necessity of restricting exports of some goods like food and medicines until Wednesday.

The Finance and the Economic Development ministries are to prioritize anti-crisis spending of the federal budget until Thursday, and the Economic Development Ministry is also to develop additional measures for imports substitution and for support of small and medium-sized businesses until the day.

Mishustin also ordered the Economic Development Ministry and the central bank to work out parameters of subsidization of loans to small and medium-sized businesses and conditions for repayment delays. The central bank will also work with the government to develop additional regulatory measures for the financial markets, Mishusin said.

The Federal Customs Service, the Federal Tax Service, and the Federal Service for Surveillance in Healthcare were ordered to monitor exports, imports, and internal demand for food, medicines, and basic consumer goods on a daily basis.

He also ordered the Communications and Mass Media Ministry to create a system for tracking of all people who contacted sick people using geolocation data of mobile operators.

The Labor and Social Protection Ministry together with the Federal Tax Service should check cases of non-payments of wages and layoffs connected to the government measures for fighting the coronavirus, and the ministry should also work out offers for preventing ungrounded layoffs together with the Justice Ministry.

(78.0443 rubles – U.S. $1)

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