Russian government officials announced the suspension of all international flights starting Friday amid the coronavirus pandemic.

An exception will be made for flights bringing Russians home from abroad, according to a statement published Thursday on the Cabinet's website.

Earlier this month, Russian authorities limited the country's air traffic to regular flights to world capitals and charter flights.

The new measure comes as the number of coronavirus cases in Russia continues to grow rapidly. On Wednesday, the government reported a total of 658 cases, with 163 new cases registered since the previous day. That is a significantly bigger daily increase than in previous weeks when the number of cases was growing by several dozens a day.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin warned President Vladimir Putin this week that the actual number of cases could be "significantly more" than reported.

Putin advised Russians in a nationally televised address to stay at home and said that workers should be allowed to take off Monday through Friday next week and still be paid.

Russia has also imposed strict quarantine measures for anyone entering the country from abroad and anyone who could have been exposed to someone infected with the virus.

The government has opted not to impose lockdown measures such as in neighboring China and some European countries.