Other events in Baltic States

A soldier stationed at the Adazi military base has tested positive for Covid-19 and several other servicemen are in self-isolation, Defense Ministry spokeswoman Sandra Brale informed LETA.

She said that the infected soldier's closest contacts or fellow servicemen are now in self-isolation and being tested for Covid-19. Brale did not reveal the number of soldiers in self-isolation, but said that there is a soldier from an allied NATO country among them.

Latvian Chief of Defense Leonids Kalnins said in an interview to Latvian Television that the Covid-19 tests of the infected soldiers' contacts had come back negative but that in line with the procedure the soldiers have been quarantined. 

For safety reasons, the contacts will be repeatedly tested for Covid-19 and they will have to spend 14 days in quarantine. 

Kalnins also did not reveal the number of quarantined soldiers but said that it was minimal.

The quarantined soldier from the allied NATO country also has a negative Covid-19 test and is currently in quarantine. His service tasks did not include direct contacts with NATO's enhanced Forward Presence Battle Group stationed at the Adazi base, Kalnins said. 

Personnel at the Adazi base continue adhering to epidemiological requirements and the military collaborate with epidemiologists to trace the source of infection.

According to information released today by the Center for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC), tree new Covid-19 cases have been confirmed in Latvia over the past 24 hours. In one case the person arrived from a country with the incidence over 25 cases per 100,000 residents, one patient returned from a country with incidence below 16 cases, and one patient had contacted a person who had arrived from abroad.

Brale would not reveal which of these cases involved the soldier in Adazi.

The Defense Ministry's spokeswoman said that the case has not affected the armed forces' combat power and that the training of soldiers at the military base continues.

This is the first Covid-19 case confirmed at the Adazi base since the spring when two soldiers of the Latvian National Armed Forces (NAF) and two soldiers of NATO allies fell ill with the coronavirus disease. All of them have since recovered.