MOSCOW, May 4. /TASS/. The spread of COVID-19 in Russia has not yet reached a plateau, the chief freelance pulmonologist of Russia’s Healthcare Ministry Sergei Avdeyev said, adding that neither has it reached the peak.

"(Russia) has not reached a plateau in fact. We are far from that point so far. Moscow Mayor (Sergei) Sobyanin has said that one fourth of the way has been passed. It is difficult to say one fourth, one third or half (of the way has been passed - TASS), but we have definitely not reached the peak yet. Speaking about what it is connected with I can say that one should note lockdown, the activity index. Note how we observe all those requirements - not very well," he was quoted as saying by the Healthcare Ministry’s press service on Monday.

The situation with the coronavirus spread directly depends on lockdown observance, Avdeyev emphasized. "The more citizens violate lockdown rules, the more trends appear related to the COVID-19 infection, the more diagnosed cases there are, the more hospitalized patients there are, the more patients are moved to intensive care, the more patients are put on ventilators and, consequently, the number of deaths related to the infection is rising, meaning that violation of the rules is directly connected with the worsening of the epidemiological situation," he explained.

To date, a total of 145,268 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia, with 18,095 patients having recovered from the virus. Russia’s latest data indicates 1,356 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.