“There are still no reports of any Hungarians having been infected as a result of the Chinese coronavirus outbreak”, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s State Secretary for Information and the International Representation of Hungary emphasised at his press conference in Budapest on Sunday.

Tamás Menczer told reporters: “There have been no reports from either Hungary or abroad of any Hungarian or foreign patients who were previously infected by the virus and are now in Hungary”. “Based on voluntary registration, the Ministry is aware of six Hungarians who are currently in the closed-off Hopei province”, he added. “All six are healthy and in contact with the Hungarian Embassy in Beijing”, he stated. “Four of them will be working on the reopening of a factory in Wuhan until the end of February and have no plans to leave the city. Another Hungarian, who is also in the same location, would like to leave the city, but would like to travel to another Chinese province, Hangzhou, where he lives and works, not back to Hungary. The sixth Hungarian doesn’t live in Wuhan, but in another city in Hopei province, and would like to return to Hungary as soon as this is possible”, he added.

“The Hungarian Embassy in Beijing is also in contact with China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as with the foreign affairs offices of Hopei province and the city of Wuhan”, Mr. Menczer told the press. The State Secretary emphasised that he had spoken to the National Chief Medical Officer on both Saturday and Sunday, who informed him that the Hungarian healthcare system is prepared, and the tests that are capable of identifying the virus are readily available. “There have been two suspected cases so far, but in both instances it transpired that doctors were not dealing with the coronavirus”, he said, adding that if the virus were to appear in Hungary, then the healthcare protocols that need to be followed exist both in Budapest and rural Hungary. “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is closely monitoring what safety protocols various countries are putting into effect, and particularly in Europe, as well as whether they introduce emergency measures at airports. We are also monitoring if any countries are introducing travel restrictions with relation to China, but we are aware of no such decision to date”, he stated.

“If anyone requires any assistance whatsoever, the consular helpline is available 24 hours a day on +3680368036 via phone, +36303636555 on Viber and +36303636111 on WhatsApp, and the helpline of the Hungarian Embassy in Beijing is +8613701382159”, he added. Mr. Menczer also reported on the fact that a Hungarian man, who had been apprehended because he remained in Thailand despite the fact that his visa had expired, and who was being held at the airport awaiting his immigration proceedings, died in the detention area of Bangkok International Airport on Sunday morning local time. “According to the information currently available, the man’s death has nothing to do with the coronavirus, but is believed to have been the result of diabetes, and the Hungarian Embassy in Bangkok is in contact with the Thai authorities who are investigating the case”, he told reporters. In reply to a question, the State Secretary said that as far as the Ministry is aware, any ban on group travel into and out of China will only be applicable to Chinese tourists. He also spoke about the fact that the vast majority of European countries have not introduced any extraordinary measures at any airports, and only a few countries are using heat gates. “It is not out of the question that Hungary will be introducing emergency measures in future, but this is not regarded as necessary for the moment”, he highlighted.

(MTI)