St Basil’s Cathedral (left) in Red Square in Moscow, just outside the walls of the Kremlin (Owen Humphreys/PA)A special disinfection tunnel has been installed in the residence of Russian President Vladimir Putin outside Moscow and two more in the Kremlin, his spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. Reports about the tunnel spraying anyone passing through it with disinfectants appeared in Russian state media on Tuesday night. The tunnels were installed when the Covid-19 outbreak “was in full swing”, Mr Peskov said. Expand Close Russian president Vladimir Putin (Matt Cardy/PA) PA / FacebookTwitterEmailWhatsapp Russian president Vladimir Putin (Matt Cardy/PA)“When it comes to the head of the state, additional precautionary measures are justified.”Last month, Mr Putin said that Russia had passed the peak of the outbreak and urged the government to gradually start easing lockdown restrictions, in place since late March. Kremlin critics question the official statistics and link reopening efforts to the Russian government’s desire to boost voter turnout in an upcoming constitutional referendum that would allow Mr Putin to rule until 2036.

Source: Irish Independent June 17, 2020 12:11 UTC