The city of Moscow, the epicenter of Russia's coronavirus pandemic, is lifting lockdown restrictions as the Kremlin prepares for a massive military parade on Red Square and a national referendum that will seal President Vladimir Putin's political future.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, a staunch Putin loyalist, all but declared victory over COVID-19 on the city's news channel Monday.
Because of the pandemic, the Kremlin reluctantly postponed its annual Victory Day parade as well as a referendum whose key provision is removing a constitutional term limit on Putin.
Since the beginning of June, the number of Moscow's new coronavirus infections has hovered around 2,000 per day, according to official government statistics.
The mayor, though a Putin disciple, was unwilling to lift the lockdown restrictions because of the persistence of new coronavirus infections, Otkrytye Media reported, citing government sources.
