Ukrainian Defense Minister Andriy Taran has announced the Armed Forces of Ukraine do not have enough personal protective equipment (PPE) for military personnel and military doctors amid the COVID-19 coronavirus crisis.
"There is not enough personal protective gear to provide everyone in the required quantity. But we are working [to resolve the problem], and we are very thankful to the country's leaders, who have given us a considerable amount of equipment beginning from the first batch delivered by a plane from China (with humanitarian aid)," the ministry's press service quoted the minister as saying.
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In addition, according to the minister, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have three mobile laboratories. "These are the labs with unique capabilities. One lab is used to help with the Health Ministry's [COVID-19] testing in the western area. And there is one lab in the Donetsk and Luhansk directions each. They are now working in Donetsk and Luhansk regions," he said.
"We've bought about a hundred test kits developed by Kyiv's Institute of Molecular Biology. If these kits prove a success, we will buy them in bulk for our labs," he added.
As of April 11, there were 17 confirmed coronavirus cases among Ukrainian servicemen across the country. No cases were recorded in the Joint Forces Operation zone in Donbas.
