Colombian president tests negative for new coronavirus after US trip

Colombian President Ivan Duque tested negative for the novel coronavirus after suspected exposure during a trip to the United States, as the overall number of cases in Latin America rose to 31.

Duque met President Donald Trump and attended a meeting of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) in Washington earlier this week.

Colombia’s Health Ministry said there was a “low risk” that some of the people who attended the same meeting as Duque had been in contact with coronavirus patients in New York.

“Since the health of the president is a matter of national interest, it was recommended that we should perform a coronavirus diagnostic test, the results of which were negative,” the ministry said in a statement.

The new virus has reached six Latin American countries so far.

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Ecuador has confirmed 13 cases, while Mexico has confirmed five. Brazil has four cases, its Health Ministry said on Thursday. The Dominican Republic has one confirmed case.

Chile and Argentina confirmed their first cases on Tuesday, and now have four cases and one case, respectively.

France’s Regional Health Agency confirmed earlier this week that there were three cases in its overseas territories in Latin America, two in St-Martin and one in St-Barthelemy. Both islands are popular cruise ship stops.

The virus, which began spreading in China in December, has killed more than 3,000 people and infected more than 90,000 worldwide. (dpa)