TY - JOUR PY - 2021// TI - The COVID-19 pandemic and war JO - Scandinavian journal of public health A1 - Gugushvili, Alexi A1 - McKee, Martin SP - ePub EP - ePub VL - ePub IS - ePub N2 - Could there be a symbiotic relationship between COVID-19 and conflict? On the one hand, circumstances associated with armed conflicts may give rise to greater spread of the virus, while, on the other hand, the COVID-19 pandemic may create conditions for violence through heightened xenophobia and nationalism or may change the dynamics of existing conflicts. We illustrate this with the example of war in the South Caucasus, one of the hot spots of the pandemic. Elsewhere, COVID-19 may have reduced the intensity of conflicts in some places, but it also may have contributed to anti-government protests and communal violence. We call for greater emphasis on traditional public health measures in unstable settings coupled with actions to hasten the peaceful resolution of ongoing conflicts.
Language: en
LA - en SN - 1403-4948 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1403494821993732 ID - ref1 ER -