Azerbaijan is coping successfully with coronavirus - Academician of RAS

"The threat of coronavirus is real."

The Russian Bureau of Report has an exclusive interview with Viktor Maleyev, adviser to the director of research at the Central Scientific Research Institute of Epidemiology and academician of Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS). He commented on the epidemiological situation facing the world, spread of coronavirus in Azerbaijan, cooperation between Russia and Azerbaijan, as well as timing the end of pandemic.

- How would you comment on the current epidemiological situation in the world? What threat does the coronavirus pose to humanity? What consequences can we expect?

- On March 11, the World Health Organization declared the disease a pandemic, which means it is a threat to all countries of the world.

The danger of coronavirus is real. We no longer need to talk about what will happen in the future, but about what is now. This pandemic has destroyed, to some extent, our health, brought a significant number of deaths, a large number of cases. The number of cases in the world may reach three million people. We also see the destruction of the economy, the removal of ties, restrictions on the movement of people, the damage of tourism, etc. It is complicated to predict what will happen in the future since the epidemic still continues. Since the disease is new, we can't yet imagine all the threats.

- How do you assess the level of spread of coronavirus in Azerbaijan and the methods of control taken by the country's leadership?

- Azerbaijan is successfully coping with this pandemic. Azerbaijan experienced very few cases of infection. As far as I know, the country recorded just over 1,500 cases and very few deaths. All the measures taken by the government are adequate and correspond to the current situation. We must continue the strict isolation and other methods adopted by the Azerbaijani leadership to eliminate the epidemic.

- Russia and Azerbaijan are strategic partners. How would you comment on the mutual support of our countries in the fight against this virus?

- Russia has helped Azerbaijan on testing systems that were necessary to identify coronavirus. Azerbaijan and Russia quickly resolved the issue of returning citizens to their countries. The countries cooperate closely, and the sanitary and epidemiological services of the two countries work together successfully from time to time. All these factors allow Azerbaijan to maintain relative stability and the ability to defeat the coronavirus.

- When can we expect the end of the pandemic?

I think that humanity will cope with this pandemic. There are several options. First of all, the epidemic should weaken in the summer, and maybe, it will not disappear completely. However, we can witness a smaller number of sick and lethal outbreaks, etc.

We are waiting to find good antiviral drugs that could manage this infection.