MOSCOW, Feb 1 — Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi discussed cooperation in fighting the coronavirus outbreak in a phone call on Saturday, the Russian foreign ministry said.

"The Russian side gave a high appraisal of the measures that China is taking to fight the spreading of the disease caused by the coronavirus,” the ministry said in a statement.

Earlier on Saturday, President Vladimir Putin ordered the Russian military to start evacuating Russian citizens from China due to the outbreak. — Reuters