DISINFO: Italy was essentially alone in front of the coronavirus. Russia was the first to help.
SUMMARY
Italy was essentially alone in front of the coronavirus. Russia was the first, to give a helping hand. Russian specialists brought special equipment to disinfect boarding houses and hospitals. In total, the military processed eight medical institutions and disinfected over 20 thousand square meters.
RESPONSE
Speculative claim about "abandoned Italy." This claim exploits the coronavirus pandemic to push a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about West's crumbling solidarity. While Russia has sent a military team to Italy, there are numerous examples of solidarity in the Western world, including among the EU and individual Member States. To cushion the blow to people’s livelihoods and the economy, the European Commission has adopted a comprehensive economic response to the outbreak, applied the full flexibility of the EU's fiscal rules, has revised its State Aid rules and proposed to set up a EUR 37 billion Coronavirus Response Investment Initiative to provide liquidity to small businesses and the health care sector. The Commission is further increasing its response by proposing to set up a €100 billion solidarity instrument to help workers keep their incomes and businesses stay afloat, called SURE. It is also proposing to redirect all available structural funds to the response to the coronavirus. To support scientific research into COVID-19, the European Commission earmarked 47,5 million EUR for shortlisted research projects that can improve epidemiology and public health, including preparedness and response to outbreaks. The EU also created the first ever stockpile of medical equipment. EU Member States are helping each other in this crisis; for example, German hospitals have offered to treat critical coronavirus patients from France as well as taking in patients from Italy and the Czech Republic has sent masks to Italy. Read more about the EU's response here and here. See similar cases claiming that the idea of a united Europe has crashed, or the myth about “European unity” is destroyed. More on EU repsonse to the COVID-19 outbreak here