PCR tests mandatory for attendees at Putin's fifth presidential inauguration

The independent Russian newspaper The Moscow Times reports that Russia lifted restrictions and limitations related to the COVID-19 pandemic almost two years ago. However, participants in Vladimir Putin's presidential inauguration will have to undergo PCR tests.

The Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Building, Andrei Klishas, announced that all guests invited to the inauguration of the head of state on May 6th had been required to take PCR tests the day before the event. "We have the inauguration on May 6. There will be information on tests. Standard procedure. Just once. It will be on the fifth" - said the politician quoted by the Russian state agency TASS.

This will be the fifth inauguration of President Vladimir Putin. According to the Central Election Commission, he was supported by 87 percent of Russians in the March elections - reports "The Moscow Times". At the end of March, Mark Galeotti, a leading British expert on Russia, commented on the election results during a meeting with members of the Association of European Journalists. "It's impossible to rule out an unexpected event that could end Vladimir Putin's reign, but even if it happens, Russia will not be a democratic country for at least another generation" - said the expert quoted by PAP.

Talking about the presidential elections in Russia, which took place on March 15-17, Galeotti noted that the surprise was to what extent the regime decided to falsify the results. "Of course, the intention was to show that Putin received more votes than in previous elections because it is wartime and the idea is to create a narrative that says the Russian people are united, while, as we know, they are not" - said.

Pointing out that hard data is hard to come by, the scientist estimated that about one-quarter of Russians support the war - that is, not necessarily war crimes. However, they accept the official narrative that Russia had no alternative - another quarter is against the war. However, the vast majority are not actively protesting against it because it requires ever greater heroism. "This means that about half of Russians try not to agree on the war. They either do not know what is happening or prefer not to know. It’s a very, very Soviet instinct," - noted Galeotti.

Source: The Moscow Times, PAP