NOVO-OGARYOVO, January 13. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin thinks that a decrease in the rate of spread of the coronavirus should not be reassuring. The head of state admitted that Moscow monitors the situation with the coronavirus in some other countries, for instance, in the UK, with alarm.
"Generally speaking, we see that worldwide, unfortunately, so far [efforts to] quash this disease and prevent all its related negative consequences have failed to pan out," he said on Wednesday at the first meeting with members of the government this year. "Yet, above all, we, of course, should be focused on the situation in the Russian Federation. We see that a certain decrease [in the number of coronavirus infections] is observed, we shouldn’t be lulled into complacency by this," the president emphasized.
"We see what is going on in some countries, for instance, in Great Britain. We observe it with alarm and remain in touch with our European partners on these issues," the head of state noted.
According to Putin, "all of this is interconnected." "Movements are inevitable and limiting our transport communications, transport connections, by air and other means, are all temporary measures," the president explained. "We need to understand what is going on in our country and how we can neutralize new emerging threats, including new strains of the coronavirus infection," he asserted.
The president requested a report on these issues from Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova with whom, according to him, he maintains "constant, almost daily, contact."