From this Saturday (March 28) to April 5, all shops in Moscow except grocery stores and pharmacies will be closed, a decree published on Thursday by Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said, according to BFM.ru.
“From March 28 to April 5, 2020, all retail trade facilities will be temporarily closed, except pharmacies and stores selling groceries and basic necessities, including those providing delivery services,” the document says.
All restaurants, cafes, and bars in Moscow will also be shut down from March 28 to April 5, a decree says. The ban does not affect cafes open within organizations and delivery services.
“From March 28 to April 5, 2020, restaurants, cafes, cafeterias, buffets, bars, diners, and other catering services will be closed, except delivery services (with citizens not allowed to visit the facilities). This ban does not apply to cafeterias, buffets, cafes, and other food services open within organizations,” the document says.
Sobyanin noted on his blog that these measures are unprecedented and that they will cause many difficulties in the daily lives of Moscow residents. However, they are necessary to slow down the spread of the infection and to reduce the number of those infected with COVID-19.
“We must temporarily ban all services requiring personal presence (for example, hair salons). This does not include medical and rehabilitation services, care for the elderly or other people in need, other social services, transport services, banking, and insurance services, housing and communications services, funeral services – all of them will still be available. There are no restrictions on remote or delivery services,” the mayor said.
According to the document, all spas and massage salons and other facilities providing such services will also be closed.
