Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced this morning that he and his family tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday. They are self-isolating in the Prime Minister’s residence.

The PM said that they were not showing any symptoms and that he would continue to work from self-isolation.

Pashinyan said he was tested for the virus because he was planning a visit to ‘the frontlines’. 

He stated that he believed he was infected during a government consultation for coronavirus prevention work during which glasses for water were set on the table by a staff member who was not wearing gloves and who has since tested positive for the virus. 

The Prime Minister’s spokesperson, Mane Gevorgyan, announced that members of the government and the Prime Minister Office’s staff will not undergo testing for COVID-19. 

‘If there is a need to conduct tests, it will only be done with a doctor’s prescription,’ Gevorgyan said. ‘Members of the government who have been in contact with the PM had adhered to safety regulations — they had worn masks, kept social distancing, used sanitisers, etc.’ 

Armenia has recorded over 9,400 cases of the novel coronavirus. There have been 139 deaths.