A Romanian national has requested to be repatriated from Wuhan, China, an area affected by a new coronavirus, while two other Romanians, from part of the same province, Hubei, have been in contact with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) through their employer.

MAE specifies that the Romanian national in Wuhan City has expressed his intention for repatriation, and his data have already been submitted and recorded with the records of the European institutions and the partners to facilitate the trip to Romania.

As for the other two Romanian nationals who are in another part of the Hubei province, the Romanian Embassy in Beijing "keeps in constant contact with their employer and the Chinese authorities to identify the best way for repatriation, given the restrictions imposed in the area."

The Romanian Embassy in Beijing is in permanent contact with both the three Romanian nationals in the province of Hubei, as well as with the representatives of the diplomatic missions of the EU member states accredited to the People's Republic of China, in order to manage the said situation.

At the same time, MAE is in direct connection with the crisis management structures at the foreign ministries of other member states of the European Union and with the relevant European bodies in order to exchange information in real time and take the necessary measures to repatriate the nationals from China.

MAE also emphasises that it can provide assistance and support for the return to Romania of the people who request it.

The contact details of the Romanian Embassy in Beijing are available to the Romanian community in the China, and the emergency telephone of the mission is permanently in the care of a diplomat. Also, for better understanding of the situation of the Romanian nationals in China, the mission officials regularly call and send messages to the people in the outbreak area and in the neighbouring regions, being aware of the situation of the Romanian nationals there.

MAE recommends postponing travel to Hubei Province, Wuhan, China, until the situation gets back to normal amidst an outbreak of viral pneumonia caused by a novel coronavirus in China.

At the same time, MAE recommends the Romanian citizens who are already in China should follow the precautionary and hygiene measures recommended in such instances and avoid moving to places where living or dead animals are being handled, as well as contact with sick people, particularly those with respiratory symptoms.

Romanians in China are advised to: strictly adhere to the advice and recommendations of the local authorities; follow local media to find out which areas are most affected in order to avoid them; take out travel, health and life insurance.

For additional information on contamination prevention, Romanian nationals can access the dedicated sites of the National Centre for Communicable Disease Surveillance and Control (www.cnscbt.ro) and the European Center for Disease Control and Prevention (http://ecdc.europa.eu).

MAE reiterates the recommendation of Romanian nationals abroad registering their presence there with the nearest diplomatic mission or Romanian consular office.

Romanian citizens can request consular assistance by dialling the phone numbers of the Romanian Embassy in Beijing: +861065323616, the Consulate General of Romania in Hong Kong: +85225233813, +85225233817 and the Consulate General of Romania in Shanghai: +862162701146 . The calls are rerouted to the Contact and Support Centre of Romanian Citizens Abroad (CCSCRS) and taken over by call centre operators 24/7. The Romanian citizens facing a difficult, special situation of an urgent nature can use the on-duty numbers of the Romanian diplomatic mission in China +8618611737488, the Consulate General of Romania in Shanghai: +8613701949075,  and the Consulate General of Romania in Hong Kong: +85296137370.

MAE also recommends accessing the Internet pages: beijing.mae.ro, shanghai.mae.ro, hongkong.mae.ro, ec.europa.eu/consularprotection, www.mae.ro, reminding the Romanian citizens travelling abroad of the "Safe Travel" application, which offers travel information and tips, as well as the text message alert service under the information campaign "A text message can save your life!". AGERPRES (RO - author: Oana Ghita, editor: Mihai Simionescu; EN- author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Adina Panaitescu)