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The aim of the study was to perform a comparative analysis of COVID-19 epidemic process in selected countries of the world during the first pandemic wave in 2020 and during the rise of SARS-CoV2 variant Omicron. Materials and research methods. Analysis of the COVID-19 epidemic process was based on data from the Wordometers website (https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries). In addition, scientific and popular science articles and official documents on the history, epidemiology, and response to the pandemic in different countries of the world in 2020-2022 were analyzed. The authors’ own observations were also used. Results of the study and their analysis. Restrictive measures adopted in the People’s Republic of China (PRC), mass screening of the population, observation of those arriving in the country and hospitalization of all those infected made it possible to virtually reduce the circulation of the virus to zero. In the Russian Federation, timely simultaneous epidemic control measures throughout the country resulted in a significant decline in the intensity of the epidemic, both early in the pandemic and after local Omicron transmission, and prevented explosive growth of cases. In the USA, Italy and Sweden, untimely or lenient restrictive measures and low testing during selected periods of the pandemic led to an avalanche of cases and deaths. Thus the epidemic process of COVID1-9 in the analysed countries depended on the timeliness, duration and extent of restrictive and quarantine measures.