Due to growing concern about the alarming death toll, Russian President Vladimir Putin has approved a government proposal to close workplaces for a week in early November due to the wave of Covid-19.
Yesterday 1,028 victims were registered in Russia. This is the highest toll since the start of the pandemic, bringing the total deaths from coronavirus to 226,353, the highest number in Europe.
Speaking at a televised meeting with government officials, Putin said this hiatus period, October 30 to November 7, could start earlier or be extended for some regions. Meanwhile, authorities across the country have taken steps to curb the spread of the virus, while addressing the widespread reluctance of the population to get the Russian Sputnik V vaccine injected.
The president has in fact launched an appeal to all Russians to “show responsibility” and get vaccinated, while the country is experiencing an escalation of infections and deaths from Covid-19. Mortality in Russia has been on the rise for weeks, reaching 1,000 deaths for the first time at the weekend. Only 45 million Russians, 32% of the country, out of a population of nearly 146 million people, received a double dose of the vaccine. The Kremlin, at the moment, has ruled out a new national lockdown and authorized the regional authorities to decide the restrictions according to the local situation. For this reason, many of Russia’s 85 regions have already introduced measures such as limited admissions to large public events, theaters, restaurants and other venues. Some have even made vaccines mandatory for certain civil servants and the over 60s.
Putin also clarified that, due to the epidemiological situation in Russia, these days will be declared “non-working days” but with the maintenance of the salary: the online newspaper Meduza reports. The proposal to declare a “non-working” week was made by Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova.
In the rest of Europe, discussions continue on the recognition of vaccination with Sputnik, which is still under evaluation at the EMA since March, in order to obtain the Green Pass. “It can be decided at the national level. This measure must be taken without discrimination against people from other EU states ». This was recalled by the spokesman of the European Commission Christian Wigand, in Brussels during the briefing with the press.