REUTERS

Ukraine's Minister of Culture and Information Policy Oleksandr Tkachenko has said a lockdown should be introduced in the country for the period of the Christmas holidays, while such plans should be announced in advance.

"I'm no Grinch. This is my point of view, which arose from discussions on weekend quarantine. To a certain extent, we need restrictions since the incidence is getting higher. Obviously, forecasting is also needed. Creative industry, arts, small- and medium-sized businesses need to understand when additional restrictions could be introduced," the minister said, speaking at a morning TV show, "Snidanok z 1+1," on November 25.

Large public gatherings are traditional during the New Year holidays. Therefore, Tkachenko proposes a "restrictive period" be introduced for two to three weeks to avoid them.

Видео дня

Read alsoLockdown on Christmas holidays possible if pace of COVID-19 spread grows – health ministry"I don't know in what form, but it would give businesses the opportunity to project losses, draft plans on how they should act now, before the holidays come, during holidays, and past holidays," the minister added.

Weekend quarantine in Ukraine

On November 11, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to introduce the so-called weekend quarantine starting from November 14.

The government repealed the adaptive quarantine system and imposed a nationwide quarantine with curbs for all territories that were in effect in the previous version of the coronavirus quarantine in zones with the orange risk level.

On November 17, the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, did not back a draft resolution recommending that the Ukrainian government soften the restrictions imposed along with the so-called weekend quarantine.

Quarantine in Ukraine: Latest