ST. PETERSBURG, June 3. /TASS/. WHO Europe Regional Director Hans Kluge expressed his gratitude to Russian authorities for prioritizing healthcare in Russia’s political agenda.
According to the WHO official, the Covid pandemic has one positive consequence: "health has never been so high."
"And that’s why I’m sitting here in this chair talking to you," Kluge said in an interview for TASS. "And I am very grateful to the administration of the president of Russia for inviting me, and for putting health - with the minister and other partners - at the top of the political agenda."
He also praised the contribution of Russian medics to the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, relaying a "low bow" of gratitude to them. "I want to thank all the health workers in the Russian Federation. I would like to say: ‘nizkiy poklon’," Kluge said, using a Russian expression for deep gratitude. He pointed out that the work of medical workers remains in very high demand, noting that they have to deal with heavy load.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, some 171.2 million people have contracted the coronavirus infection, over 3.5 million of them died. According to the federal statistics, 5,090,249 cases have been registered in Russia, with 4,702,599 recoveries and 122,267 deaths. Russia was the first country in the world to register its coronavirus vaccine - the Sputnik V - on August 11, 2020. This vaccine is currently registered by regulators of about 60 countries with total population of over 1.5 billion.