The Russian government registered 697 deaths from covid-19 in the last 24 hours this Saturday, a record for the fifth consecutive day at a time when the country suffers a strong wave of infections due to the Delta variant of the virus.
Russia recorded 24,439 new cases in one day, among the highest figures since mid-January, when the country was emerging from a second wave of coronavirus.
In the capital Moscow, the main focus of the epidemic, 116 deaths were recorded in the last 24 hours, a figure close to its record set at the beginning of the week.
The outbreak of coronavirus began in mid-June with the spread of the Delta variant but also due to a difficult vaccination campaign. Launched in December amid the official propaganda for the Sputnik V vaccine, so far it has only convinced 23.6 million of the 146 million Russians, that is, 16% of the population, with at least one dose.
Moscow in recent weeks imposed measures such as the return to telework for part of the wage earners, compulsory vaccination in personalized assistance services and created a health pass to be able to go to restaurants.
Almost a score of regions reintroduced restrictions, which most of them had lifted since January.
President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday opposed imposing the obligation to inoculate at the national level, but called on Russians to get vaccinated and not give in to rumors about vaccines.
The Kremlin, which admitted that it will not be able to reach its target of 60% vaccinated by August, rejects any national lockdown to preserve the country’s fragile economy.
The number of officially registered deaths is 137,262, making Russia the European country most mourned by the pandemic. However, the Rosstat Statistics Agency, which handles a broader definition of deaths linked to the coronavirus, counted 270,000 deaths at the end of April.
