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Coronavirus pandemic

WHO has no questions about Russia’s COVID-19 death rates - representative

Melita Vujnovic stressed that Russia’s COVID-19-related mortality rates were low, but the large amount of tests being carried out allowed for "having a very good picture to understand what is happening to the pandemic"

© Sergei Bobylev/TASS

MOSCOW, June 12. /TASS/. The World Health Organization’s Representative to Russia, Melita Vujnovic, has said that the WHO has no questions about Russia’s COVID-19 mortality rates.

"The WHO by no means has any questions about Russia’s coronavirus-related mortality statistics. WHO Emergencies Program Executive Director Michael Ryan voiced a very general idea. He is not a statistics specialist and has no experience in this field. He merely expressed an opinion. But the WHO is of the opinion there can be no questions," Vujnovic said on the Business FM radio station.

She stressed that Russia’s COVID-19-related mortality rates were low, but the large amount of tests being carried out allowed for "having a very good picture to understand what is happening to the pandemic."

"Russia’s rate of autopsies is very high, nearly 100%. This is the main explanation for the current statistics," she added.

Speaking at a news briefing in Geneva on Wednesday the WHO Emergencies Program Executive Director Michael Ryan described as "unusual" and "hard to understand" the fact that Russia’s novel coronavirus-related mortality rate was lower than in many other countries. He speculated that a large number of coronavirus tests made might be the reason.

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