By suggesting that Russians were less vulnerable than other populations to the ravages of COVID-19, the government undermined the importance of personal responsibility in fighting the spread of the disease. Many of the medical supplies that Moscow sent turned out to be unusable. However, such efforts to win cheap propaganda points backfired. A public health official bragged in front of Putin in April 2020 that Russia’s mortality rate was among the world’s lowest. Russian military jets flew equipment and personal protective gear to Italy and even the United States to showcase the Putin regime’s largesse and preparedness. The Kremlin’s media machine gloated at the West’s troubled response to the pandemic early on. Even the most at-risk groups-including frontline workers, medical staff, and the elderly-have been reluctant to get vaccinated or to take extra precautions. Russian officials are publicly venting their frustration over such plans as well as the country’s stubbornly low vaccination rate-to little avail. Yet instead of staying home, many Russians are taking advantage of their unexpected week off and are heading out on domestic and foreign vacations.
In an effort to slow the spread of the disease, Putin approved a weeklong paid holiday from October 30 to November 7. Now, after downplaying the threat of rising infections for months, Russian officials have suddenly acknowledged the severity of the crisis on their hands. Paul Stronski is a senior fellow in Carnegie’s Russia and Eurasia Program, where his research focuses on the relationship between Russia and neighboring countries in Central Asia and the South Caucasus. Many Russians have grown complacent or even fatalistic about the disease as the pandemic drags on. Even Russian President Vladimir Putin hesitated for months after the splashy August 2020 rollout of Sputnik V before getting inoculated himself in March 2021. Public skepticism and mistrust about the efficacy and safety of domestically produced Russian vaccines have compounded the problem. Only about one-third of Russians are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. Russia’s Change of TuneĪlthough Russia was the first country to roll out a COVID-19 vaccine, its muddled performance in managing the pandemic has left the country vulnerable. Given Moscow’s lack of transparency, inadequate testing in some parts of the country, and the Kremlin’s penchant for manipulating statistics, the real figure could be far greater. Russia also has the highest COVID-19 mortality rate among countries in Europe and the second-highest rate in Asia, after India. With Russia setting new domestic records for daily COVID-19 infections and deaths, one question looms large: How did the situation spiral out of control so quickly?Īccording to official data, Russia’s COVID-19-related death toll since the pandemic’s start through late October 2021 stands at over 230,000. Moscow and Saint Petersburg are heading back into lockdowns.
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