Norway to close ports, airports from Monday to stop coronavirus - PM

Norway is to shut its ports and airports from Monday in a move to curb the spread of coronavirus, although exemptions will be made for Norwegians returning from abroad, Prime Minister Erna Solberg said on Saturday.

The government is ready to do all that's needed to secure the country's economy, hit by business shutdowns due to the virus outbreak, and would seek to import medical equipment from China, Solberg told a news conference. Planes carrying Norwegian citizens would still be able to land in Norway, and the government was negotiating with Norwegian Air and SAS about bringing nationals home.

"Norwegians abroad will, of course, be allowed to come home," Solberg said, adding that the airlines would also be asked to transport medical equipment from China. The Nordic country would also implement extensive control of its land entry points, but would not shut its more than 1,500-kilometres-long border with neighboring Sweden, she added.

Norway recorded its second death linked to coronavirus on Saturday, while the official number of infected persons rose to around 950.