[France24] The United Nations chief said he hopes many countries in the world will follow the "remarkable example" of South Korea, which he said has been "extremely successful" in addressing the coronavirus pandemic and is planning to tackle climate change in its recovery from COVID-19.Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pointed to Thursday's announcement "that there was no new case in the Republic of Korea," the country’s official name.
At the same time, he said, South Korea has presented plans for "a very ambitious green deal" for its recovery from the pandemic, including a ban on new coal-fired plants and a reduction of emissions from existing coal-fired plants.
"We hope that this example of the Republic of Korea will be followed by many other countries in the world," Guterres said at a news conference.
The Koreas Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement early Thursday that four cases in the previous 24 hours, all imported, took the country’s total to 10,765, with 247 deaths and 9,059 recoveries.
South Korea’s caseload has been slowing in recent weeks after it recorded hundreds of new cases every day between late February and early March. It has subsequently relaxed some of its social distancing guidelines and is expected to ease up on more restrictions in the coming days if the downward trend continues.
South Korea had its first confirmed coronavirus case Jan. 20, the same day as the United States.