EU's eastern wing restricts entry, shuts venues to stop virus
The European Union's eastern members ramped up the fight against the coronavirus, with measures ranging from restricting entry to foreigners and shutting schools and shops to banning large public gatherings.
The region has gone from no signs of the disease known as Covid-19 last month to reporting cases from the Baltics to the Black Sea, prompting governments to impose measures of varying severity.
The ruling party in Romania, which has 49 cases, unexpectedly abandoned a push for early elections due to the virus, while the Czech Republic, which has 96 cases, announced among the most stringent steps in the region.
After its first cases appeared two weeks ago upon the return of thousands of Czechs winter break skiing holidays in the Italian Alps, the country declared a 30-day state of emergency and barred entry to non-residents from the 15 nations most affected.
"If we see that our measures don't have the desired effect, we will take more measures," Prime Minister Andrej Babis said Thursday. "That's not a problem."
The government also banned travel to affected nations, restricted opening hours for restaurants and closed gyms and libraries. Neighboring Slovakia shut its borders to many non-residents and closed international airports, schools, bars and clubs.
Other countries, including Poland, Romania, Bulgaria and Slovenia also closed schools and put limits on the size of public events. The restrictions followed the World Health Organization's declaration that the coronavirus outbreak is a pandemic and countries should step up efforts to fight the contagion.
Echoing moves by governments across the region, Poland announced plans to help borrowers by suspending debt payments for several months, and the central bank made a verbal intervention to shore up markets. Elsewhere, economic measures also include earmarking funds to pay for increased sick leave, introducing temporary tax amnesties and taken other measures to ease the economic pain of those affected.
Emerging European countries Serbia and Ukraine, which aren't EU members, staged interest-rate cuts, while the region's currencies and stock indices fell, with Poland's WIG20 sliding as much as 12% as it tracked a global market rout.
In the Baltic region, Lithuania closed schools and public events until March 27. It also recommended people avoid international travel and banned trips to most affected countries. The capital Vilnius separately closed schools for five weeks and urged people to work from home and shop online.
Hungary's government declared a state of emergency Wednesday, banning large gatherings and forbidding entry to travelers from Italy, China, South Korea and Iran. Budapest canceled theater performances and movies in venues the municipality owns. And while universities were shut, the nation's teachers' union demanded that schools and kindergartens be closed too.