Mongolia receives Russian response reporting two COVID-19 and two rhinovirus cases

Mongolia received an official Russian response on the Irkutsk situation during the night before its 9 October meeting. According to the Mongolian government’s report, Deputy Prime Minister and State Emergency Commission chair Nyamtaishir Nomtoibayar presented it. The account reports two COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) cases and two rhinovirus infections, with no signs of other dangerous infectious diseases detected.

The government text identifies Russia’s federal public-health watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor (Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing), as the sender. Mongolia’s National Emergency Management Agency repeats these details in its account of the commission’s third meeting. Both official reports concern one meeting and one Russian response.

Neither publication attaches the letter or laboratory test protocols. They do not identify the people in whom the viruses were detected or the samples tested. These details therefore do not establish the pathogen behind Darya Shipilova’s illness. The published texts contain no new laboratory conclusion about the cause of her death.

On 6 October, the commission had ordered stronger border checks and exchange of laboratory information. The new official accounts say Mongolia operated at heightened readiness because of possible plague in Irkutsk. LiveTV also reports a decision to cancel this readiness level, but its text is labelled as automatically converted. The video has not been reviewed in this check, and the two official reports read here contain no cancellation decision. Cancellation remains a claim by that outlet.

The meeting also addressed bear attacks, livestock disease and winter preparations. Decisions on those issues do not describe new human cases in the Irkutsk region. Mongolia’s zoonotic-disease centre had already relayed completion of contact monitoring; the new meeting documents further exchange of information between the countries.

The meeting is dated 9 October; no exact speaking time is given. The Russian response arrived “last night”, according to the official accounts. The government’s news list shows 14:05:00 without a timezone; the emergency agency gives only a date. LiveTV: published 12:02:47, modified 12:35:48, timezone unstated. Added to this research on 9 October.