Officials in Istanbul on Wednesday denied reports that a diplomat visiting the Turkish metropolis this August had tried to skirt measures to stem the spread of COVID-19.
"No judicial or administrative incident took place within the framework of our guest's visit to our city,” said a statement by the Istanbul Governorship, referring to an official visit on Aug. 26-29 by Oleh Urusky, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister and minister of strategic industries.
The statement expressed "sadness" over "unrealistic" reports by foreign media outlets, adding that it would be an "honor" to again welcome Urusky to visit the city.
Earlier, some reports claimed that Urusky, during his visit, had violated COVID-19 quarantine measures required for foreign visitors coming to Turkey.
The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed more than 1.48 million lives in 191 countries and regions since last December.
Over 63.87 million cases have been reported worldwide, with over 41 million recoveries, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University.
While the US, India, and Brazil remain the worst-hit countries in terms of the number of cases, Europe is in the grip of a devastating second wave of infections.
