Some Russians Imprisoned in US Tested for Coronavirus, Results Negative, Envoy Says

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - Some Russians imprisoned in the United States have been tested for the novel coronavirus and the results were negative, Russian Ambassador to Washington Anatoly Antonov told reporters on Thursday.

"Some of the prisoners already tested for coronavirus. Fortunately, results are negative", Antonov said.

Russia continues to urge the United States to release the most vulnerable group of imprisoned Russian citizens whose health and life are threatened during the novel coronavirus pandemic, Antonov added.

In recent months, Moscow has urged Washington to release Konstantin Yaroshenko and Bogdana Osipova, both currently serving sentences at the Danbury correctional facility in New York State - the epicentre of the novel coronavirus outbreak in the United States.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova have both urged the United States to release imprisoned Russian citizens amid the novel coronavirus crisis.

As of 10 June, US Federal Bureau of Prisons reported of 2,134 federal inmates and 190 staff have contracted the novel coronavirus nationwide and 80 have died.