Corona in Russia: Real numbers higher than official ones, Moscow mayor source

(Patria) – The Mayor of Moscow reported to President Putin on Tuesday that the number of coronavirus infections in the capital threatens to exceed official data.

Sergei Sobyanin, who is otherwise a close associate and ally of Putin, informed his superior during his visit to a hospital in the Moscow suburbs.

The mayor told Putin that a 'serious situation' was developing, and that the real number of infected people was unknown because the population was not being tested, but that it was increasing rapidly.

Official data indicate that 495 cases of infection have been registered in Russia, significantly fewer than in other Western and much smaller countries, which has attracted the attention of the Western public and prompted various speculations.

Putin has so far repeated the statement that the epidemic is 'under control', but the official data have been questioned by some Russian doctors.

Nevertheless, measures have been taken, and nightclubs, cinemas, and children's entertainment centers have been closed.

Putin visited a hospital in the Moscow suburbs in a protective hazmat suit and praised the doctors for their work.

Two senior Russian lawmakers have proposed a law that would punish quarantine violations with prison sentences - up to seven years for those who caused the death of two or more people, and up to three years for causing mass infection, Reuters reported.