Montenegro's health authorities on Monday registered 18 Covid-19 deaths, the highest daily death toll to date, just as the country launched a campaign to vaccinate all citizens over 80 years of age.

The total death toll since the pandemic started now stands at 1,085. Montenegro, which has a population of about 620,000, currently has nearly 9,000 active cases of the coronavirus.

For weeks now, Montenegro has been among the countries with the highest number of new cases in the world per capita, and is in the world’s top ten countries in number of Covid deaths per 100,000 people.

Although health authorities had called for a total lockdown of the country last week, the government’s Covid task force decided to focus on increase resources to ensure better compliance with the existing restrictions instead, involving even the small nation’s NATO-allied army.

Bars and restaurants have been closed down in most cities, and a nationwide curfew is in place, effective from 9 pm to 5 am.

Since last week, the capital of Podgorica – home to about a third of the country’s entire population – are not allowed to leave the metro area, while anyone arriving must have a special pass to enter the city. The same restrictions have been imposed in several other towns.

Meanwhile, authorities began administering Russian-made vaccine Sputnik V, after Serbia donated 2,000 doses. Another 10,000 doses o Sputnik V that the government has purchased have been delivered, as well as 30,000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccine, donated by China.

The government has already bought 50,000 more doses of Sputnik V and is reportedly negotiating the purchase of another batch of 200,000 doses.