The fast-spreading coronavirus has dampened global economic prospects for 2020, a year that many had hoped would see a revival in the fragile world economy. For Turkey, the threat comes atop existing economic woes, coupled with its deepening military involvement in the war in neighboring Syria. Though the deadly virus is not yet officially present in Turkey, it has badly affected another neighbor, Iran, forcing the closure of border crossings in a blow to bilateral trade and tourism.
Of the nearly 89,000 cases reported globally as of March 2, 90% are in China, the epicenter of the outbreak, where the death toll is nearing 3,000. The director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO) warned March 2 that the virus was now spreading faster outside China, singling out South Korea, Japan, Iran and Italy as “our greatest concern.” In Iran, Turkey’s eastern neighbor, the official death toll stood at 66 as of March 2, with more than 1,500 people infected since Tehran announced the first deaths Feb. 19. According to WHO, infection cases have been exported from Iran to at least 11 countries.
