Romanian President Klaus Iohannis on Tuesday said the risk of a coronavirus pandemic remains high across the Europe and protecting EU citizens is the continent’s main priority.
Romania has 29 confirmed cases of the killer virus and no deaths. “There are still very few” fatalities, Iohannis said. “We don’t have mass spreading. We know where each of the patients was infected. It’s essential to prevent the uncontrolled spreading of the infection.”
Iohannis spoke Tuesday evening after a video conference with the EU heads of state. He said member states need to coordinate efforts to prevent the potentially serious effects the coronavirus epidemic could have on Europe’s economies
Iohannis advised Romanians avoid crowded spaces. “We Romanians have a saying: Better safe than sorry. There are words that we must all guide our behavior these days,” Iohannis said.
He said the relatively low number of cases in Romania was down to action and preventive measures taken by authorities, adding that the measures were aimed at preventing a “bigger evil.”
There are currently 29 cases of COVID-19 in Romania. Five of those have recovered.
“It’s vital to make small sacrifices now to avoid much bigger ones in the future,” Iohannis said, appealing to Romanians to follow recommendations from authorities.
“Now is the moment to be good citizens…. We demonstrated that we can win any battle on one condition” to be united.”
He expressed solidarity with the estimated one million Romanians living in Italy. Romania has suspended all flights, buses and trains to and from Italy and everyone who comes from this country is automatically placed under two weeks’ quarantine.
.Iohannis will meet with acting prime minister Ludovic Orban and Prime Minister-designate Florin Citu on Wednesday to discuss the coronavirus crisis.
“This is a defining moment for the capacity of our nation to stay united. Lack of responsibility and care, mistrust and panic can cause more harm than the virus itself,” he said.
