26 Jun 2020 10:29

Russian Foreign Ministry unaware of Russians crossing border via Belarus in violation of coronavirus restrictions - deputy minister

MOSCOW. June 26 (Interfax) - The Russian Foreign Ministry is unaware of Russian citizens traveling abroad via Belarus in violation of coronavirus-related restrictions, Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko told Interfax.

"We know nothing of Russian citizens traveling across the Russian-Belarusian border in violation of coronavirus-related travel bans," Rudenko said.

Russia is not considering any measures of tightening control over the crossing of the Russian-Belarusian border, he said.

Certain groups of Russian citizens are allowed to travel to Belarus with documents certifying the purpose of their voyage, such as medical treatment, care for sick relatives, education, employment with Russian companies contributing to continuous industrial processes in Belarus, and shift work, he said.

A number of Western media outlets said earlier that Russians had been massively neglecting coronavirus-related travel bans by traveling to Belarus by car and taking a plane to many countries, including European ones, from there. The media said "hundreds" of Russians had traveled in such manner, including those without travel authorization.