COVID-19 pandemic in Turkmenistan
On 29 February 2020, Turkmenistan began refusing the entry of citizens from countries affected by the virus. On 5 March three foreign travelers, two of them diplomats of an Arab country, were denied entry when they flew from Almaty, Kazakhstan. Their flight was diverted to Türkmenabat and after arriving at Ashgabat, they were all put on a flight to Istanbul.