'Turkey responded quickly to COVID-19: Azerbaijan envoy

By Seyma Uzundere

ANKARA (AA) - The Azerbaijani ambassador to Turkey said Friday that Ankara responded very quickly and very well to the coronavirus crisis and praised Turkey's success in dealing with the pandemic.

Speaking at an event on Turkey's effort against COVID-19 in foreign mission chiefs' eyes, organized by Turkey's Directorate of Communications, Khazar Ibrahim said Turkey and Azerbaijan are in close cooperation and continue their fight to curb the virus in similar ways.

He defined the virus as something that emerged unexpectedly and said no country was prepared to deal with it.

Expressing his pleasure that Azerbaijanis in Turkey have COVID-19 treatments for free, he thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the foreign and health ministries.

He highlighted the importance of vaccination to protect against the virus and paying attention to scientists, the Azerbaijani diplomat said he misses hugging people the most during restrictions and measures.

Ibrahim also urged Azerbaijanis living in Turkey to comply with hygiene rules and mask-wearing.

Since a vaccination campaign began on Jan. 14, Turkey has administered more than 18.41 million coronavirus vaccine jabs nationwide, according to official figures.

Since December 2019, the pandemic has claimed more than 2.9 million lives in 192 countries and regions.

More than 134.1 million cases have been reported worldwide, with recoveries exceeding 76.17 million, according to figures compiled by US-based Johns Hopkins University.