Turkish company donates medical equipment to Serbia

BELGRADE, Serbia

Turkish company Tasyapi on Wednesday donated medical equipment to Serbia to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19.

Tasyapi signed a $285 million contract with the Serbian government in 2018 to build the Sarajevo-Belgrade Highway.

The company donated 25 intensive care beds, five medical and one surgical aspirator, mattresses, linens, medical clothing, and footwear.

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Zorana Mihajlovic expressed gratitude to the company for donating medical equipment.

Mihajlovic said this gesture points to the good relations between the two countries and their presidents -- Serbia's Aleksandar Vucic and Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Tasyapi carries out some of the priority projects in the field of road infrastructure in Serbia, such as the construction of a motorway from Sremska Raca to Kuzmin, and reconstruction of the Novi Pazar-Tutin road.

Serbia has confirmed 1,060 COVID-19 cases so far, with 28 deaths from the virus.

The government declared a state of emergency and imposed a night curfew from 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. local time (1600-0400GMT).

The country has also shut its borders to foreigners, while schools, colleges, sports halls, and gyms have also been closed.

After first appearing in Wuhan, China last December, the virus has spread to at least 180 countries and territories. The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a pandemic.

The number of confirmed cases worldwide has now surpassed 883,200 while the death toll is over 44,100, and more than 185,300 have recovered so far, according to data compiled by the U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.

Despite the rising number of cases, most who contract the virus suffer only mild symptoms before making a recovery.