Russia reported 895 more COVID-19-related deaths over the past 24 hours, the highest daily rise since the pandemic hit the country, bringing the death toll to 211,696, the official monitoring and response center said Tuesday. A total of 25,110 new infections were registered, taking the national tally to 7,637,427. The number of recoveries increased by 18,568 to 6,759,059. Meanwhile, Moscow, Russia's worst-hit region, reported 3,827 new cases, taking its total to 1,654,476. The number of new infections in the capital have increased by 30 percent in the past week as its vaccination rate remained low, according to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday the country's vaccination rates "leave much to be desired," despite the complete preparedness of existing infrastructure and mass vaccination. He urged the public to get vaccinated as early as possible, as "it is the only way to protect one's life in the midst of the pandemic." Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said Monday that the recent surge in COVID-19 cases is a cause of "serious concern," adding that infections and hospitalizations are rising in most Russian regions. — Agencies
