Soldiers carry out disinfection work inside a public bus in Gwangju, South Korea, on March 24, 2020. (image: Army)
SEOUL, March 25 (Korea Bizwire) — Four foreign countries have asked South Korea to share its know-how in stemming the new coronavirus at military barracks, officials said Wednesday.
Military attaches at the diplomatic missions of the four countries in Latin America, Asia and the Middle East have recently asked the defense ministry what South Korea’s military and government have done to cope with the COVID-19 virus, the officials said.
“We are going to give a document detailing our virus-related measures to the offices in a couple of days,” an official said, adding the material will also be distributed to military officials of around 39 countries stationed here this week.
South Korea’s containment efforts have gained some global recognition, with fresh cases among the military population and the whole citizens having grown relatively slowly in recent days amid the global pandemic.
As of Tuesday, the military reported 39 coronavirus patients, including five civilian workers. The number of active-duty service personnel in South Korea stands at around 580,000.
The country had a total of 9,037 confirmed cases, including 120 deaths.
To stop the virus from spreading into the barracks, the ministry has implemented diverse measures, such as limiting soldiers’ vacationing and meeting visitors, as well as the temporary suspension of off-installation drills.
More than 3,100 service members and officials, including over 450 medical workers, were mobilized as of Tuesday for quarantine and disinfection works in a move to help the government’s fight against the virus.
Earlier, a foreign ministry official said South Korea has received a growing number of requests from foreign countries for Seoul’s diagnostic products and other forms of aid to contain the disease.
(Yonhap)
