Early reports from Russia suggested that self-styled “president for life” Vladimir Putin’s early action to close the country’s borders had prevented a major outbreak in the country.
But now, with the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases rising sharply and government business bailouts only helping out the super-rich, the pandemic threatens to damage Putin’s hopes of hanging on to power.
Official figures show 124,054 confirmed cases – the seventh-highest in the world – with over 1,200 deaths. A vote on legal changes that would enable him to stay in office until 2036 was put off because of pandemic fears, and a poll published on Thursday revealed that 48% of Russians disapproved of how Putin was handling the outbreak.