Another plane with Russian aid to arrive to Venezuela soon — president

Nicolas Maduro

BUENOS-AIRES, March 29. /TASS/: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Saturday that another Russian plane is to arrive to the republic in the coming days, carrying humanitarian assistance needed to tackle the novel coronavirus outbreak.

"A Russian military plane with equipment, sent by Russian President Vladimir Putin, will arrive in the coming days," Maduro told Venezolana de Television.

According to Maduro, his country has received various medical equipment and goods from China and was expecting more aid to come.

On March 21, Russian Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing (Rospotrebnadzor) said it had sent novel coronavirus testing kits to 13 states. The federal agency said more kits were to delivered to Egypt, Serbia and Venezuela. On March 23, Maduro announced that his country had received 10,000 testing kits from Russia.

Venezuela’s government reported the first two coronavirus cases in the country on March 13. On March 17, President Nicolas Maduro announced the decision to impose a nationwide quarantine. A total of 113 cases have so far been recorded in the country, two people died.