MOSCOW, March 20. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin does not need to be tested for coronavirus, because there are no symptoms of the disease, Russian presidential spokesman, Dmitry Peskov told the media.
"The president does not need to undergo coronavirus tests, because he is well and keeps working according to his original schedule," Peskov said.
The spokesman confirmed that the people who are in direct contact with the head of state, for instance, Crimea Bridge builders who on March 18 received decorations from Putin in Sevastopol, do undergo such checks.
"This is really so. We believe such precautions are reasonable. To ensure the president is able to keep working everybody around him must take precautions," he added.
Effectiveness of early measures
Early measures have helped prevent a large-scale spread of the coronavirus in Russia, the Kremlin spokesman told reporters.
When asked what kept the virus from spreading across the country, Peskov pointed out that head of the national consumer watchdog Anna Popova "began to take measures in advance, which produced certain results." "Besides, the government created a response center that has been working effectively," the presidential spokesman noted, adding that the work continued round-the-clock.
According to the Kremlin spokesman, none of the countries facing the coronavirus threat has been able to stop COVID-19 from crossing its borders. "We also failed to do it because it is impossible," he noted. Peskov emphasized that it was incorrect to compare the situations in different countries, as well as the disease statistics. "We are all in the same boat. In this regard, the consolidated efforts of our virologists are important, as well as the efforts that health professionals are making on the global level to determine guidelines for the treatment of the disease and create a vaccine," he stated.
The presidential spokesman added that efforts to that end were underway. In particular, Russian health workers who cooperate with their foreign colleagues "have achieved good results." Peskov specified that cooperation with Chinese health professionals had been touched upon in Thursday’s telephone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Coronavirus pandemic
In late December 2019, Chinese authorities notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about the outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, central China. Since then, cases of the novel coronavirus — named COVID-19 by the WHO — have been reported in more than 180 countries, including Russia.
On March 11, the WHO declared the outbreak a global pandemic. As of now, over 240,000 people have been infected around the world and about 10,000 have died. Russia has identified 199 cases as yet.