MOSCOW, July 27. /TASS/. A relaxed approach to a number of anti-coronavirus measures against the background of the complex epidemiological situation in Russia is not related to the election campaign. Furthermore, low vaccination rates have not slowed down the spread of coronavirus, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Tuesday.
"The fact that people don’t wear masks, this is obviously not related in any way to any election campaign. This is an issue of people’s awareness and their sense of responsibility for their health and the health of those around [them]. <...> Before any campaigns, as we all know, [people] were not particularly disciplined about wearing masks or observing precautionary measures. This is absolutely unrelated," the Kremlin official insisted.
He particularly noted that only getting inoculated could curb the spread of the virus. "In general, [you] can draw only one conclusion: the not very high rates of vaccination are the reason we cannot yet cope with the spread of the infection. Only inoculation and only immunizing a certain number of residents will allow us to contain this infection," the spokesman noted.
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on scheduling the 8th State Duma elections for September 19. The voting will stretch over a three-day period: September 17, 18, and 19. Simultaneously, there will be direct elections for the heads of nine Russian regions (in three others, top executive officials will be elected by local legislatures) and 39 regional parliaments.