MOSCOW, June 11. /TASS/. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov has responded to a statement by the World Health Organization (WHO), which considered the fact that the coronavirus mortality rate in Russia is lower than in many other countries to be "unusual." According to Peskov, there is nothing strange about Russia’s data.
"No," he said, when asked whether the Kremlin finds Russia’s statistics on the coronavirus mortality rate strange.
When asked whether the Kremlin gave recommendations to Russia’s sanitary watchdog to heed the opinion of the World Health Organization, Peskov noted that the Russian watchdog was in contact with the WHO. "Therefore, I think they will tackle the issue and answer all questions from the World Health Organization. I have no doubt about that," he said.
Peskov refrained from commenting on the difference between the existing methods for assessing the coronavirus mortality rate. "No, I can hardly explain anything here. I do hope that our epidemiologists will provide the appropriate explanations," he said.
Speaking at a briefing in Geneva on Wednesday, Michael Ryan, the Executive Director of the WHO Health Emergencies Program, described as unusual the fact that the coronavirus mortality rate in Russia is lower than in many other countries. According to Ryan, when many people are tested, one can see relatively low mortality rates.
To date, 502,436 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia, with 261,150 patients having recovered from the disease. Russia’s latest data indicates 6,532 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.