VI
EN
The Vietnamese National Assembly donated medical supplies to the parliaments of several countries.
On the afternoon of May 28th, at the National Assembly building, the Secretary General of the National Assembly and Head of the National Assembly Office, Nguyen Hanh Phuc, representing the Vietnamese National Assembly, presented medical supplies to the parliaments of several African and Middle Eastern countries (including Algeria, Iran, Mozambique, Palestine, and South Africa) and the Indian Red Cross. Secretary General Nguyen Hanh Phuc expressed his hope that this gift from the Vietnamese National Assembly would provide both moral and material support to help the people of these countries overcome the Covid-19 pandemic as soon as possible.
Thailand and Malaysia close their shared border due to COVID-19 cases.
The Padang Besar checkpoint at the border between Thailand and Malaysia was closed again on May 28 after Thai authorities detected several more cases of COVID-19 among Thai citizens returning from abroad.
The Thai government's Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) announced that authorities have detected several COVID-19 cases among Thai citizens returning from Saudi Arabia who entered Thailand through the Padang Besar border crossing. Following this, Thai and Malaysian authorities conducted thorough disinfection of the areas surrounding the Padang Besar border crossing.
Indonesia is considering reopening tourism in Bali.
On May 28, Indonesia's Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Whisnutama Kusubandio, stated that Bali is one of the Indonesian provinces likely to reopen to international tourists. Bali's Deputy Governor, Tjokorda Oka Artha Ardana Sukawati, also declared that Bali is ready to meet the requirements to become a safe destination for international tourists after the Covid-19 pandemic.
Last week, local authorities held thorough discussions with tourism businesses and provincial agencies to develop new health protocols to ensure the safety of tourists upon reopening. As a result, Bali topped the list of Indonesian localities with the best pandemic prevention efforts. Therefore, the task force recommended that Bali could reopen for tourism but continue to implement effective pandemic prevention measures.
South Korea temporarily closes public places where large crowds gather.
On May 28, Seoul officials announced 79 new cases of COVID-19, including 68 community transmissions. Authorities are concerned about the risk of a new outbreak in the capital. The South Korean government has decided to temporarily suspend operations at all public places with large gatherings, such as museums, art galleries, parks, and the national theater in Seoul and surrounding areas, until June 14. Bars must close, while numerous planned events in Seoul and surrounding areas have been canceled or postponed. The government is also reviewing its pandemic prevention measures at 80 freight terminals and 1,300 distribution warehouses nationwide.
India and Bangladesh recorded their highest daily number of new COVID-19 cases.
On May 28, India reported 6,566 new cases of COVID-19, the highest daily increase in new infections in the South Asian nation. According to the Indian Ministry of Health, 194 deaths were recorded in the past 24 hours. To date, the world's second most populous country has a total of 158,333 COVID-19 cases, including 4,531 deaths. The recovery rate has also risen to over 42%.
Bangladesh also reported an additional 2,029 cases of Covid-19. This is the largest daily increase in the South Asian nation since March 8th. This brings the total number of Covid-19 cases in Bangladesh to 40,321, including 559 deaths. The number of recovered cases in the country is 8,425.
Moscow began phase 2 of easing lockdown restrictions in early June.
On May 28, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin announced that the second phase of easing lockdown restrictions was possible due to a sustained decline in Covid-19 infection rates. Starting June 1, residents of Moscow, including those over 65 and citizens with chronic illnesses, will be allowed to leave their homes for walks and sports.
According to the Mayor of Moscow, the "strolling" mode, being tested from June 1st to June 14th, will allow parks and green spaces to reopen to the public. However, the increased number of people on the streets and in parks will increase the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection. To prevent this, mask-wearing regulations will be strengthened, and playground equipment in parks will remain closed.
WHO warns European countries against cutting healthcare spending.
The World Health Organization (WHO) warned European governments on May 28 against cutting healthcare spending amid the current economic crisis – a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing measures implemented to control the disease.
According to WHO statistics, up to 50% of European Union (EU) countries faced a supply-demand imbalance in healthcare between 2008 and 2013. This number has now increased to 19 countries (out of 28 EU countries), with the number of people affected in 2013 exceeding the 3 million recorded in 2008.
The UK has a higher COVID-19 death rate than other countries.
On May 28, the Financial Times (FT) published research showing that the death rate from the Covid-19 respiratory disease in the UK was the highest among the hardest-hit countries, based on comparable tracking data. Official figures from the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS), released earlier this week, showed that between March 14 and 20, the number of deaths in the UK was nearly 60,000 higher than usual. From this, the FT conducted an analysis, using data from 19 countries, showing that the SARS-CoV-2 virus directly or indirectly claimed the lives of 891 people per million inhabitants in the UK. This is the highest rate among the countries included in the analysis.
The number of deaths from COVID-19 in Europe has risen to over 175,000.
As of the afternoon of May 28th, the number of deaths from the Covid-19 respiratory disease in Europe had exceeded 175,000. AFP statistics from official sources show that by 3:10 PM on May 28th (Vietnam time), Europe had recorded a total of 175,011 deaths out of 2,084,058 confirmed cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
The countries with the highest number of deaths are the UK (37,460), Italy (33,072), France (28,596), and Spain (27,118). Europe is the continent most severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in the world.
The United States is struggling to avoid the worst-case scenario regarding COVID-19.
The United States has officially reached a "sad milestone" as the total number of deaths from the Covid-19 respiratory disease in the country now exceeds 100,000, a death toll that US President Donald Trump once called the "worst-case scenario" for Covid-19 when speaking on a Fox News program in early May.
The worrying thing is that these numbers show no sign of stopping; on the contrary, they may continue to rise as all US states begin the first phase of reopening their economies by easing social distancing measures.
Argentina cares for homeless patients.
To prevent the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus among the homeless population, on May 27, authorities in Buenos Aires, Argentina, opened a medical care center for homeless people infected with Covid-19, with a capacity of up to 798 beds. This facility specializes in treating Covid-19 patients with mild to moderate symptoms that do not require hospitalization.
