Turkey Supports the Fight against the Coronavirus Outbreak

Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA) loaded medical supplies on the military cargo aircraft that will bring the Turkish citizens in Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the novel coronavirus (2019-nVoC) outbreak, to Turkey.

The medical supplies provided by TİKA to combat the outbreak and prevent it from spreading further to other countries will be delivered to Chinese authorities. Within this framework, the A400M cargo aircraft of the Turkish Air Force, which carries 1000 biohazard suits, 93,500 filtering masks, and 1000 disposable protective coveralls, will take off to China with medical teams and equipment for the major evacuation operation planned by the Ministry of Health. 

The citizens who live in Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, and request to return to Turkey will be brought to Turkey by air ambulance with medical teams and infection specialists. –

The novel coronavirus was first detected in the city of Wuhan in Hubei province, China on December 12, 2019. On December 31, 2019, the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission announced that 27 more people, who had some link to the Huanan Seafood Market in the city, were diagnosed with the “mysterious” disease and that the market was closed.

The preliminary results of the scientific research on genome sequencing of the novel coronavirus revealed the fact the virus originated in bat and snake species endemic to China; therefore, wild animal trade was banned in the country until the outbreak is over. In addition to mainland China, the virus was detected not only in Taiwan and the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau, but also in other countries in the region such as Thailand, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, and Nepal.

The novel coronavirus, which is also referred to as “Wuhan virus” after the city where it first emerged, has spread to France, Canada, the USA, Australia, the United Arab Emirates, Finland, and Germany, mostly through people traveling from China to these countries. 11 people in Japan and 8 people in Taiwan were diagnosed with the novel coronavirus, which first emerged in Wuhan in December 2019. As of this morning, the number of cases of novel coronavirus, which is now widespread throughout China, increased to 7,711, with 170 deaths.