Russia’s President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday said the situation with the spreading coronavirus is “under control” in the country, after infections were “contained.”
“We were able to contain mass penetration and spread” of the pandemic, the Russian president told a government meeting. “The situation is generally under control despite high risk level.”
“Citizens should be given all the information they need: What kind of threat we are facing, what measures are being taken by the state and what each person should do to protect themselves and their loved ones,” Putin said.
His comments came after a tour of a new coronavirus information center in Moscow that is pulling together IT resources, including surveillance cameras and artificial intelligence, to monitor social media for “fake news” on the coronavirus, spot empty supermarket shelves and enforce quarantines.
Earlier on Tuesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied reports that President Vladimir Putin was preparing an address to the nation about the coronavirus.
As of Tuesday, there are 114 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Russia with no fatalities. Globally, the virus has infected more than 128,000 people and killed more than 7,100.