In “New statistics suggest thousands of unreported Covid-19 deaths in Moscow”, Oliver Carroll reports in The Independent that in May nearly 6,000 more people died in Moscow than average, which is nearly 60% higher than average. This casts doubt on official Russian statistics which say that only 1,704 Muscovites died of COVID-19 during May.
By official counts, thousands of Muscovites remain in intensive care due to COVID-19, and less than a quarter of these are expected to survive.
Despite the epidemic, on Tuesday Moscow abruptly ended its COVID-19 lockdown. In “Strict lockdown measures in Moscow lifted as Russian coronavirus cases approach half a million”, ABC News’s Dragana Jovanovic reports that although the lockdown was very strict until the start of the week, hairdressers and beauty salons have now resumed operation. Indoor dining is scheduled to resume June 23, the day before a high-profile Red Square military parade to mark the 75th anniversary of victory in World War II. The parade is part of the run-up to a July 1 vote on a change to the Russian constitution that will allow Vladimir Putin to remain president until 2036.
In “Moscow Eases Coronavirus Lockdown Ahead Of Military Parade And Referendum”, the NPR’s Lucian Kim writes that the mayor of Moscow, though a staunch Putin follower, resisted lifting of lockdown restrictions because of the high COVID-19 case count in Moscow. However, the Kremlin convinced the mayor to lift restrictions so that the parade and referendum could be held.