Putin Wants Parades Ahead of Key Vote. Local Officials Aren’t So Sure. - The New York Times

soworos.blogspot.com

MOSCOW — When President Vladimir V. Putin ordered Russia’s annual military parade to be rescheduled for later this month, he cast it as a sign of life returning to normal in his virus-stricken nation.

But when a Muscovite named Zoya asked the capital city’s mayor, Sergei S. Sobyanin, on state TV this week about planned events for the day of the parade, he told her bluntly to stay home.

“Zoya, I would not recommend you go anywhere,” Mr. Sobyanin said.

The Kremlin is scrambling to drum up feel-good patriotism ahead of a delayed nationwide referendum that would allow Mr. Putin to stay in office until 2036. But the virus keeps getting in the way, with Mr. Putin struggling to solve Russia’s biggest domestic crisis in decades even as he casts himself as a tough problem-solver who is in control of events.

“He is, of course, a dictator,” said Andrei V. Kolesnikov, head of the domestic politics program at the Carnegie Moscow Center think tank. “But here he is a paper dictator.”

Mr. Putin’s approval rating has already slumped to a 20-year low of 59 percent amid public demands that the government do more to help people hurt by two months of lockdown. A muddled message over military parades — and what sorts of gatherings are and are not allowed as the virus continues to spread — could further harm his standing.

President Vladimir V. Putin at a wreath-laying ceremony marking the 74th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany, in Moscow in May of 2019.Credit...Yuri Kadobnov/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

At least 12 Russian cities have said they won’t allow parades on June 24, the day that Mr. Putin decreed Russia would hold postponed festivities marking the 75th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over the Nazis in World War II.

In Moscow, where the country’s main parade is still on, city authorities are signaling they will try to arrange the event without the usual throngs of residents pushing up against barricades to watch intercontinental ballistic missile launchers roll by.

“Yes, official events will take place,” Mr. Sobyanin said, “but it’s best you watch them on TV.”

Typically celebrated on May 9, Victory Day is Russia’s most revered holiday, and Mr. Putin has long used his perch overseeing the martial pageantry to cement his image as the commander-in-chief who rebuilt the country as a great power.

This year, Victory Day was supposed to be especially grand, and it would have given Mr. Putin a platform to celebrate a constitutional overhaul prolonging his ability to rule Russia by two six-year presidential terms. But the pandemic upended all that.

Mr. Putin postponed the referendum to approve the constitutional changes to July 1 from April. He spent much of the spring governing by video conference from his country residence — critics called it his “bunker” — as Russia struggled with one of the world’s biggest outbreaks of the virus.

The rescheduled parades, then, appeared timed to give Russians something to celebrate just before the referendum. While the July 1 vote is sure to pass — many critics of Mr. Putin plan to boycott it — a strong turnout would give the president a fresh boost of legitimacy as he enters the third decade of his rule.

Military planes flew over Moscow in early May, but the grand parades planned for Victory Day did not go ahead.Credit...Sergey Ponomarev for The New York Times

But now the delayed Victory Day celebrations are emerging as a test of Mr. Putin’s claim that Russia has overcome the worst of the coronavirus pandemic — and they are looming as potentially new vectors of the disease. The result is a rare clash in tone between Mr. Putin, who is emphasizing a return to normalcy, and regional leaders, who are saying in increasing numbers that the virus remains so dangerous that it would be wrong to draw crowds to a parade.

“We decided not to risk people’s health and, most importantly, the health of our dear veterans,” Mikhail Vedernikov, the governor of Pskov region in western Russia, posted on Instagram on Wednesday.

It was too soon for the elderly to take part in public events, and holding the parade without veterans would “contradict the very spirit” of the holiday, he wrote. As a result, Pskov’s Victory Day parade is postponed indefinitely.

Other cities that postponed or rejected plans for a parade in recent days include Tver and Yaroslavl, north of Moscow; Kursk and Belgorod in the southwest; Ulyanovsk, Saransk and Naberezhniye Chelny in central Russia; Perm and Nizhny Tagil in the Urals; Tomsk in Siberia; and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in the Far East.

“We will hold the parade another time, when the situation becomes more clear and the threat is either minimized or goes away entirely,” Igor Rudenya, governor of Tver region, said Thursday.

The Coronavirus Outbreak

• Frequently Asked Questions and Advice

  Updated June 12, 2020

  • What’s the risk of catching coronavirus from a surface?

    Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks.

  • Does asymptomatic transmission of Covid-19 happen?

    So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement.

  • How does blood type influence coronavirus?

    A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study.

  • How many people have lost their jobs due to coronavirus in the U.S.?

    The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April.

  • Will protests set off a second viral wave of coronavirus?

    Mass protests against police brutality that have brought thousands of people onto the streets in cities across America are raising the specter of new coronavirus outbreaks, prompting political leaders, physicians and public health experts to warn that the crowds could cause a surge in cases. While many political leaders affirmed the right of protesters to express themselves, they urged the demonstrators to wear face masks and maintain social distancing, both to protect themselves and to prevent further community spread of the virus. Some infectious disease experts were reassured by the fact that the protests were held outdoors, saying the open air settings could mitigate the risk of transmission.

  • How do we start exercising again without hurting ourselves after months of lockdown?

    Exercise researchers and physicians have some blunt advice for those of us aiming to return to regular exercise now: Start slowly and then rev up your workouts, also slowly. American adults tended to be about 12 percent less active after the stay-at-home mandates began in March than they were in January. But there are steps you can take to ease your way back into regular exercise safely. First, “start at no more than 50 percent of the exercise you were doing before Covid,” says Dr. Monica Rho, the chief of musculoskeletal medicine at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago. Thread in some preparatory squats, too, she advises. “When you haven’t been exercising, you lose muscle mass.” Expect some muscle twinges after these preliminary, post-lockdown sessions, especially a day or two later. But sudden or increasing pain during exercise is a clarion call to stop and return home.

  • My state is reopening. Is it safe to go out?

    States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people.

  • What are the symptoms of coronavirus?

    Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days.

  • How can I protect myself while flying?

    If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.)

  • How do I take my temperature?

    Taking one’s temperature to look for signs of fever is not as easy as it sounds, as “normal” temperature numbers can vary, but generally, keep an eye out for a temperature of 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. If you don’t have a thermometer (they can be pricey these days), there are other ways to figure out if you have a fever, or are at risk of Covid-19 complications.

  • Should I wear a mask?

    The C.D.C. has recommended that all Americans wear cloth masks if they go out in public. This is a shift in federal guidance reflecting new concerns that the coronavirus is being spread by infected people who have no symptoms. Until now, the C.D.C., like the W.H.O., has advised that ordinary people don’t need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. Part of the reason was to preserve medical-grade masks for health care workers who desperately need them at a time when they are in continuously short supply. Masks don’t replace hand washing and social distancing.

  • What should I do if I feel sick?

    If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.

  • How do I get tested?

    If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested.

---

In Moscow, the parade is going ahead despite the concerns of Mr. Sobyanin, the mayor, that the virus remains a risk in the dense capital of 13 million people. The city started lifting its lockdown over the last week in a three-phase process slated to end on June 23, the day before the parade — a timetable that critics said was dictated by the political calendar rather than by the disease.

Medics donned protective suits, preparing to enter an area with Covid-19 patients, at a hospital in Moscow last month. Credit...Sergey Ponomarev for The New York Times

On May 26, when Mr. Putin announced the rescheduled date of the parade, he said it would be safe to go ahead because the coronavirus situation “remains stable” in the country. But the pandemic continues to spread, especially outside the capital, which bore the initial brunt of the disease.

What has remained stable is the rapid growth of infections — about 9,000 new cases detected per day, a figure that has changed little in more than three weeks. The government reported 8,987 new cases on Friday, including 7,273 outside Moscow.

In all, Russia’s more than 510,000 confirmed infections is the third-highest in the world, after the United States and Brazil, and its official death toll, over 6,700, is widely seen as an undercount.

But Mr. Putin keeps signaling that it is time to get back to normal. He held his first public event in weeks on Friday, an outdoor awards ceremony in Moscow marking a national holiday known as Russia Day. Television images showed him chatting casually with the award recipients, and only one person in the group — a doctor — could be seen wearing a mask.

Across Russia, at least two dozen cities are still expected to hold parades on June 24. The 14,000 service members marching in Moscow are being tested three times a week for the coronavirus, the Defense Ministry’s official newspaper reported. At least 12 foreign leaders, mainly from former Soviet countries, will attend, Sergei V. Lavrov, the foreign minister, said.

In a televised security council meeting on Thursday, the defense minister, Sergei K. Shoigu, promised Mr. Putin, “Everything will be ready for the parade, Vladimir Vladimirovich.”

Oleg Matsnev contributed research.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

"local" - Google News
June 13, 2020 at 05:15AM
https://ift.tt/2C2v9zD

Putin Wants Parades Ahead of Key Vote. Local Officials Aren’t So Sure. - The New York Times
"local" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2WoMCc3
https://ift.tt/2KVQLik

Bagikan Berita Ini