Russia: Putin announces extension of quarantine until May 11

MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday announced an extension of the country’s quarantine until May 11, aiming to nail down its progress in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

Putin said that thanks to forward-thinking measures, Russia managed to get properly prepared for the virus’ spread, reorganize the health care system, and stock medicines and equipment, all of which resulted in fewer cases and deaths.

The extended measures include continuing a suspension of work activities and keeping major cities, including the capital Moscow and the second-largest-city Saint Petersburg, on lockdown.

At the same time, Putin instructed the government to prepare by May 5 recommendations on gradually exiting the quarantine and a national plan for revitalizing the economy and business activities while taking necessary precautions against a resurgence in the virus.

Earlier Tuesday Russian authorities confirmed that 6,441 people tested positive for COVID-19 over the last 24 hours, bringing the overall number of cases to 93,558.

Over the same period, the death toll due to the virus rose to 867, with 72 more fatalities.

Recoveries also increased to 8,458 after 1,110 more people were discharged from hospitals.

The country has carried out more than 3.1 million tests, with over 192,000 people under medical surveillance due to suspected infection.