This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/24/world/europe/coronavirus-russia-china-commerce.html

The article has changed 33 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 8 Version 9
Businesses ‘Getting Killed’ on Russian Border as Coronavirus Fears Rise Businesses ‘Getting Killed’ on Russian Border as Coronavirus Fears Rise
(2 months later)
BLAGOVESHCHENSK, Russia — With a contagious illness raging in China, just 600 yards away across the frozen Amur River, the Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Russian border city of Blagoveshchensk thundered with promises of salvation from the plague.BLAGOVESHCHENSK, Russia — With a contagious illness raging in China, just 600 yards away across the frozen Amur River, the Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Russian border city of Blagoveshchensk thundered with promises of salvation from the plague.
“A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you,” promised Dmitri Zhang, a Chinese Orthodox priest, reciting a psalm offering deliverance for those of faith from the “pestilence that stalks in darkness.”“A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you,” promised Dmitri Zhang, a Chinese Orthodox priest, reciting a psalm offering deliverance for those of faith from the “pestilence that stalks in darkness.”
The special prayer service on Sunday, featuring pleas for mercy in both Russian and Chinese and attended by worshipers from both countries, displayed just how intertwined the fortunes — and now the misfortunes — of the two countries have become.The special prayer service on Sunday, featuring pleas for mercy in both Russian and Chinese and attended by worshipers from both countries, displayed just how intertwined the fortunes — and now the misfortunes — of the two countries have become.
It showed as well how the destructive effects of the virus can be felt even in a far-flung outpost like Blagoveshchensk, where it has yet to infect a single person.It showed as well how the destructive effects of the virus can be felt even in a far-flung outpost like Blagoveshchensk, where it has yet to infect a single person.
Until the virus started killing people in Wuhan, China, and spreading fear far beyond, Blagoveshchensk had staked its future on ever-closer relations with China, harnessing its economy to burgeoning cross-border commerce and a flood of traffic across the river, by boat in summer and over a pontoon bridge laid on the ice in winter.Until the virus started killing people in Wuhan, China, and spreading fear far beyond, Blagoveshchensk had staked its future on ever-closer relations with China, harnessing its economy to burgeoning cross-border commerce and a flood of traffic across the river, by boat in summer and over a pontoon bridge laid on the ice in winter.
With the border now closed on orders from Moscow, this has all ground to a halt, leaving the city frozen in limbo. Businesses that depend on China are shriveling, hotels once full of Chinese guests stand empty and the local university, once a magnet for paying pupils from China, is struggling to cope as hundreds of its students who went home for the Lunar New Year holiday find themselves stranded.With the border now closed on orders from Moscow, this has all ground to a halt, leaving the city frozen in limbo. Businesses that depend on China are shriveling, hotels once full of Chinese guests stand empty and the local university, once a magnet for paying pupils from China, is struggling to cope as hundreds of its students who went home for the Lunar New Year holiday find themselves stranded.
A road bridge, the first across the Amur River and the 1,140 mile stretch of border it demarcates, was completed last November. But the huge structure never opened to traffic and now stands marooned in the snow and ice, a monument to hopes suddenly dashed, or at least delayed, by the spread of the disease.A road bridge, the first across the Amur River and the 1,140 mile stretch of border it demarcates, was completed last November. But the huge structure never opened to traffic and now stands marooned in the snow and ice, a monument to hopes suddenly dashed, or at least delayed, by the spread of the disease.
Also suffering is China’s image as a benign force from which Russia can only reap benefit. This is slowly being eclipsed by anxiety over China’s new, unwelcome role as a source of disease, agonizing uncertainty and frustrated hopes.Also suffering is China’s image as a benign force from which Russia can only reap benefit. This is slowly being eclipsed by anxiety over China’s new, unwelcome role as a source of disease, agonizing uncertainty and frustrated hopes.
“Everything is at a standstill,” said Julia Tavitova, the general director of Amurturist, a Russian company that had depended on visitors from China to fill a hotel it operates on the Russian bank of the Amur. “It is a chain reaction. One by one, businesses are getting killed by this disease.”“Everything is at a standstill,” said Julia Tavitova, the general director of Amurturist, a Russian company that had depended on visitors from China to fill a hotel it operates on the Russian bank of the Amur. “It is a chain reaction. One by one, businesses are getting killed by this disease.”
She has let go half her company’s staff.She has let go half her company’s staff.
Blagoveshchensk’s biggest hotel, Asia, built to house throngs of visitors from China, is now a ghost ship, its 18 floors mostly empty of guests. Nearby shops selling jewelry, gold and other products popular with Chinese buyers have lost nearly all their business.Blagoveshchensk’s biggest hotel, Asia, built to house throngs of visitors from China, is now a ghost ship, its 18 floors mostly empty of guests. Nearby shops selling jewelry, gold and other products popular with Chinese buyers have lost nearly all their business.
Fearful that the presence of Chinese guests at her company’s own hotel, the Druzhba, or Friendship, might drive away other regular customers, Ms. Tavitova last month decided to bar Chinese from booking rooms. “We could not risk losing everything,” she explained. The Kremlin last week made the same calculation, announcing that, starting last Thursday, all Chinese citizens would be barred from entering Russia. The decision slammed a lucrative tourism industry driven in a large part by Chinese visitors, more than 1.5 million of whom came to Russia last year.Fearful that the presence of Chinese guests at her company’s own hotel, the Druzhba, or Friendship, might drive away other regular customers, Ms. Tavitova last month decided to bar Chinese from booking rooms. “We could not risk losing everything,” she explained. The Kremlin last week made the same calculation, announcing that, starting last Thursday, all Chinese citizens would be barred from entering Russia. The decision slammed a lucrative tourism industry driven in a large part by Chinese visitors, more than 1.5 million of whom came to Russia last year.
Heihe, the Chinese city on the other side of the river, has several confirmed coronavirus infections in the district under its jurisdiction, while the surrounding province of Heilongjiang has nearly 500 officially reported cases and possibly many more.Heihe, the Chinese city on the other side of the river, has several confirmed coronavirus infections in the district under its jurisdiction, while the surrounding province of Heilongjiang has nearly 500 officially reported cases and possibly many more.
Giant neon signs, clearly visible from the Russian side, flash constant reminders of the crisis, displaying the Chinese Communist Party’s rallying cry: “Go Wuhan, Go China.”Giant neon signs, clearly visible from the Russian side, flash constant reminders of the crisis, displaying the Chinese Communist Party’s rallying cry: “Go Wuhan, Go China.”
But the party’s message is written in Chinese so few Russians understand it.But the party’s message is written in Chinese so few Russians understand it.
In Blagoveshchensk, there is no sign of panic or even mild alarm, just anger at a spike in vegetable prices after deliveries from China stopped. Virtually nobody wears a face mask, despite an order from the authorities that this be done in schools and many other public places.In Blagoveshchensk, there is no sign of panic or even mild alarm, just anger at a spike in vegetable prices after deliveries from China stopped. Virtually nobody wears a face mask, despite an order from the authorities that this be done in schools and many other public places.
But the proximity of so much potential danger has, on social media, stirred a frenzy of fear-mongering and wild rumors — that the virus was created in a secret Chinese or, alternatively, American laboratory; that infected Chinese have slipped across the border; and that the Blagoveshchensk airport will soon be closed and the city sealed.But the proximity of so much potential danger has, on social media, stirred a frenzy of fear-mongering and wild rumors — that the virus was created in a secret Chinese or, alternatively, American laboratory; that infected Chinese have slipped across the border; and that the Blagoveshchensk airport will soon be closed and the city sealed.
“People call from Moscow and ask, ‘Are you still alive out there?’” said Andrey V. Druzyaka, an associate professor in history at the Blagoveshchensk State Pedagogical University.“People call from Moscow and ask, ‘Are you still alive out there?’” said Andrey V. Druzyaka, an associate professor in history at the Blagoveshchensk State Pedagogical University.
Li Lihua, a Russian-speaking Chinese businesswoman, has been working in Blagoveshchensk since the 1990s, surviving repeated economic and political crises to build up a small empire of restaurants, factories and real estate projects.Li Lihua, a Russian-speaking Chinese businesswoman, has been working in Blagoveshchensk since the 1990s, surviving repeated economic and political crises to build up a small empire of restaurants, factories and real estate projects.
The current paralysis, she said, is far worse than previous trials. The Chinese laborers she needs to finish building four 10-story apartment blocks on the outskirts of Blagoveshchensk cannot enter Russia, and nobody in Russia, she said, wants to get involved with a venture so dependent on China.The current paralysis, she said, is far worse than previous trials. The Chinese laborers she needs to finish building four 10-story apartment blocks on the outskirts of Blagoveshchensk cannot enter Russia, and nobody in Russia, she said, wants to get involved with a venture so dependent on China.
At Three Whales, a big market in the center of Blagoveshchensk, a few customers recently roamed stalls mostly run by Chinese traders. Wang Wencheng, who sells Chinese-made sports gear, said sales had plummeted. He wears a face mask to reassure his few remaining customers.At Three Whales, a big market in the center of Blagoveshchensk, a few customers recently roamed stalls mostly run by Chinese traders. Wang Wencheng, who sells Chinese-made sports gear, said sales had plummeted. He wears a face mask to reassure his few remaining customers.
With many fellow traders stuck on the other side of the river, their stalls have been shrouded in blue tarpaulins that make them look like a crime scene.With many fellow traders stuck on the other side of the river, their stalls have been shrouded in blue tarpaulins that make them look like a crime scene.
Tatiana Kapustina, who runs a business with her husband exporting artisanal honey, mostly to China, said sales, which last year reached metric 50 tons, had fallen to “a total of zero” this year.Tatiana Kapustina, who runs a business with her husband exporting artisanal honey, mostly to China, said sales, which last year reached metric 50 tons, had fallen to “a total of zero” this year.
“China is not going to collapse, but nobody knows when and how this will all end,” Ms. Kapustina said. “Uncertainty is our biggest problem.”“China is not going to collapse, but nobody knows when and how this will all end,” Ms. Kapustina said. “Uncertainty is our biggest problem.”
Just three months ago, Blagoveshchensk and Heihe were celebrating the completion of the bridge connecting the two countries across the Amur, a tangible example of how Russia and China have overcome the suspicion, fear and outright hostility that flowed for decades along the river and even led to a brief war in 1969.Just three months ago, Blagoveshchensk and Heihe were celebrating the completion of the bridge connecting the two countries across the Amur, a tangible example of how Russia and China have overcome the suspicion, fear and outright hostility that flowed for decades along the river and even led to a brief war in 1969.
Suspicion is now creeping back, fanned by strident nationalist voices on social media and gossip on the street.Suspicion is now creeping back, fanned by strident nationalist voices on social media and gossip on the street.
In Volkovo, a poor village outside Blagoveshchensk, the regional health authorities have turned a two-story clinic into a quarantine center for Chinese who crossed the border after the outbreak.In Volkovo, a poor village outside Blagoveshchensk, the regional health authorities have turned a two-story clinic into a quarantine center for Chinese who crossed the border after the outbreak.
Updated June 1, 2020
Exercise researchers and physicians have some blunt advice for those of us aiming to return to regular exercise now: Start slowly and then rev up your workouts, also slowly. American adults tended to be about 12 percent less active after the stay-at-home mandates began in March than they were in January. But there are steps you can take to ease your way back into regular exercise safely. First, “start at no more than 50 percent of the exercise you were doing before Covid,” says Dr. Monica Rho, the chief of musculoskeletal medicine at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago. Thread in some preparatory squats, too, she advises. “When you haven’t been exercising, you lose muscle mass.” Expect some muscle twinges after these preliminary, post-lockdown sessions, especially a day or two later. But sudden or increasing pain during exercise is a clarion call to stop and return home.
States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people.
Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks.
Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days.
If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.)
More than 40 million people — the equivalent of 1 in 4 U.S. workers — have filed for unemployment benefits since the pandemic took hold. One in five who were working in February reported losing a job or being furloughed in March or the beginning of April, data from a Federal Reserve survey released on May 14 showed, and that pain was highly concentrated among low earners. Fully 39 percent of former workers living in a household earning $40,000 or less lost work, compared with 13 percent in those making more than $100,000, a Fed official said.
Yes, but make sure you keep six feet of distance between you and people who don’t live in your home. Even if you just hang out in a park, rather than go for a jog or a walk, getting some fresh air, and hopefully sunshine, is a good idea.
Taking one’s temperature to look for signs of fever is not as easy as it sounds, as “normal” temperature numbers can vary, but generally, keep an eye out for a temperature of 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. If you don’t have a thermometer (they can be pricey these days), there are other ways to figure out if you have a fever, or are at risk of Covid-19 complications.
The C.D.C. has recommended that all Americans wear cloth masks if they go out in public. This is a shift in federal guidance reflecting new concerns that the coronavirus is being spread by infected people who have no symptoms. Until now, the C.D.C., like the W.H.O., has advised that ordinary people don’t need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. Part of the reason was to preserve medical-grade masks for health care workers who desperately need them at a time when they are in continuously short supply. Masks don’t replace hand washing and social distancing.
If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.
If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested.
Charity Navigator, which evaluates charities using a numbers-based system, has a running list of nonprofits working in communities affected by the outbreak. You can give blood through the American Red Cross, and World Central Kitchen has stepped in to distribute meals in major cities.
The head of the village administration, Dzhasur Samandof, said he had no problem with the quarantine center but was tired of fielding angry questions from residents in a panic over untrue rumors — of sick Chinese wandering village streets, and of a school canteen next to the quarantine center sharing cutlery with possibly infected Chinese.The head of the village administration, Dzhasur Samandof, said he had no problem with the quarantine center but was tired of fielding angry questions from residents in a panic over untrue rumors — of sick Chinese wandering village streets, and of a school canteen next to the quarantine center sharing cutlery with possibly infected Chinese.
Nikolai Kukharenko, a co-director of Blagoveshchensk’s Confucius Institute, part of a Beijing-funded program to spread the teaching of Chinese abroad, said social media had played a particularly noxious role in spreading fear, noting that a 2003 outbreak of the more lethal SARS virus in China had stirred little concern in Russia.Nikolai Kukharenko, a co-director of Blagoveshchensk’s Confucius Institute, part of a Beijing-funded program to spread the teaching of Chinese abroad, said social media had played a particularly noxious role in spreading fear, noting that a 2003 outbreak of the more lethal SARS virus in China had stirred little concern in Russia.
Mr. Kukharenko was appalled this month by the reaction online to photographs he posted of face masks he had collected for delivery to China. Self-proclaimed Russian patriots assailed him as a “traitor,” who, as one zealous critic said, had forgotten that “China is not an ally but our most important potential opponent and enemy.”Mr. Kukharenko was appalled this month by the reaction online to photographs he posted of face masks he had collected for delivery to China. Self-proclaimed Russian patriots assailed him as a “traitor,” who, as one zealous critic said, had forgotten that “China is not an ally but our most important potential opponent and enemy.”
Such views don’t represent mainstream opinion in Blagoveshchensk, but a relationship whose momentum had seemed unstoppable is suddenly stuck. Whether it can start moving again will depend largely on how fast China’s idled economy starts up — and starts consuming the oil and gas that underpin relations between Moscow and Beijing.Such views don’t represent mainstream opinion in Blagoveshchensk, but a relationship whose momentum had seemed unstoppable is suddenly stuck. Whether it can start moving again will depend largely on how fast China’s idled economy starts up — and starts consuming the oil and gas that underpin relations between Moscow and Beijing.
Power of Siberia, a new 1,800-mile gas pipeline that opened in December to carry natural gas from Siberia to China, passes under the Amur in Blagoveshchensk. North of the city, Gazprom is building the world’s biggest gas processing plant, largely to serve China.Power of Siberia, a new 1,800-mile gas pipeline that opened in December to carry natural gas from Siberia to China, passes under the Amur in Blagoveshchensk. North of the city, Gazprom is building the world’s biggest gas processing plant, largely to serve China.
A more immediate problem, however, is getting the border open again.A more immediate problem, however, is getting the border open again.
Of the more than 200 Chinese students enrolled at the State Pedagogical University in Blagoveshchensk, only a few are now attending class.Of the more than 200 Chinese students enrolled at the State Pedagogical University in Blagoveshchensk, only a few are now attending class.
Luan Bohan, a 22-year-old Chinese student who stayed in Russia over the Lunar holiday, said he had encountered no overt discrimination. But, he added, children who see him on the street with his face mask sometimes point and shout “Chinese virus, Chinese virus” before running away.Luan Bohan, a 22-year-old Chinese student who stayed in Russia over the Lunar holiday, said he had encountered no overt discrimination. But, he added, children who see him on the street with his face mask sometimes point and shout “Chinese virus, Chinese virus” before running away.
Some residents, though, particularly those who see China as Russia’s best hope of resisting the West, blame the United States for the outbreak.Some residents, though, particularly those who see China as Russia’s best hope of resisting the West, blame the United States for the outbreak.
Aleksandr Kozhin, a Russian who lives mostly in Heihe but is now stuck on the Russian side of the river, is such a fervent admirer of China’s economic and political model that he thinks a secret American laboratory could have created the new coronavirus as a weapon to undermine China’s success and image.Aleksandr Kozhin, a Russian who lives mostly in Heihe but is now stuck on the Russian side of the river, is such a fervent admirer of China’s economic and political model that he thinks a secret American laboratory could have created the new coronavirus as a weapon to undermine China’s success and image.
And regardless of where the virus comes from, he added, Russia has nothing to fear: “Two hundred grams of vodka will kill any virus.”And regardless of where the virus comes from, he added, Russia has nothing to fear: “Two hundred grams of vodka will kill any virus.”