Rospotrebnadzor has responded to reports that Russian tourists in Kazakhstan are complaining of coronavirus. The agency denied media reports about a fundamentally new 'Stratus' strain, explaining that it has been known to epidemiologists for almost two years and is under constant control. However, the Russian agency did not comment on whether tourists are actually falling ill with coronavirus en masse, Interfax reported. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.
The press service of Rospotrebnadzor urged the public to interpret monitoring data correctly and not to give in to panic. The XFG genovariant, which received the unofficial name 'Stratus' in the media, is not something new for global medicine.
'The XFG variant, which received the unofficial name 'Stratus', is not a fundamentally new strain of SARS-CoV-2: it has been known to specialists since January 2025 and is under the observation of international and national health authorities,' the agency said.
The epidemiological situation regarding coronavirus infection both in Russia and abroad is monitored by specialists in a continuous operational mode.
The editorial office of Kursiv requested information from the Ministry of Health about the number of Russian tourists infected with coronavirus in Kazakhstan.
Thus, Rospotrebnadzor confirmed that the XFG strain is not new but did not provide data on the incidence among tourists. The agency also did not deny reports of mass complaints from tourists about coronavirus.
Earlier, media reported that Russian tourists in Kazakhstan were complaining of coronavirus symptoms. There has been no official confirmation of this information from Kazakh or Russian authorities.
The Ministry of Health of Kazakhstan has not yet responded to Kursiv's request. The editorial office is awaiting an official response.
Recall that the coronavirus pandemic began in 2020. Since then, several variants of SARS-CoV-2 have emerged, the most widespread being 'Omicron'. The XFG genovariant is a derivative of the 'Omicron' line and was identified in January 2025.
The World Health Organization previously classified the XFG variant as a 'variant under monitoring'. This means it does not cause epidemiological concern but requires monitoring.
Exact statistics on the spread of coronavirus among Russian tourists have not yet been published. Neither Rospotrebnadzor nor the Ministry of Health of Kazakhstan has provided specific figures.
It is worth noting that the name 'Stratus' is unofficial and appeared in the media. Officially, this genovariant is called XFG.
The situation with coronavirus in Kazakhstan remains unclear. There is no official information on the number of cases among tourists. The editorial office of Kursiv continues to monitor developments.