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Putin to give television address Thursday: Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin will address the nation on television Thursday, his spokesman said, after the country registered a sharp increase in coronavirus cases.

“In the afternoon he will record another appeal. Now the president is working on the text”, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, adding the president’s speech would be aired after 1300 GMT.

Coronavirus cases in Russia spiked Thursday with 771 new infections registered bringing the total to 3,548 and 30 deaths, according to official numbers.

In a rare televised address last Wednesday, Putin announced that Russians would not be required to go to work this week, but would still get paid, as part of efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Thursday’s announcement comes after health officials on Wednesday called for an extension to the week off to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

He also postponed a key public vote on constitutional reforms that would allow him to stay in power until 2036.

Dozens of regions throughout Russia have gone on lockdown this week as part of new preventative measures against COVID-19.