Soon they can be counted on two hands: On Saturday, the small Pacific state of Palau lost its status as one of the last countries on the planet without a corona case. The Ministry of Health reported the first two cases – but gave the all-clear at the same time. The two travelers from the US outskirts of Guam had tested positive for the corona virus after their entry and were quarantined together with their contact persons.
“We call on everyone to keep a calm head,” said the Ministry of Health, which decided against a lockdown. The reason: More than 80 percent of the 18,000 inhabitants on the island are already completely vaccinated. President Surangel Whipps said the island nation was “Covid-free, but is now Covid-safe”.
WHO still lists 13 countries without coronavirus
Palau is located around a thousand kilometers east of the Philippines and was one of only 13 countries without corona infection until Saturday. The country had already reported a corona case to an immigrant in May – but this was not counted by the WHO because the infection had happened long before the arrival in Palau and there was no longer any risk of infection.
At the beginning of the corona pandemic, Palau quickly isolated itself and closed the borders – despite massive consequences for the important tourism industry. Most of the other countries on the WHO list are also small Pacific island states. With the exception of North Korea and Turkmenistan, where there have long been doubts about the correctness of the official representation of the freedom from Covid.
