Coronavirus: the impressive Kremlin operation to protect Vladimir Putin

Since the very beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the Russian authorities have done everything possible to protect the president Vladimir Putin of the infection. But How do you organize a quarantine in the Kremlin and how much did it cost?

Over the past year, hundreds of people have had to self-quarantine in Russia, before being close to Vladimir Putin. Some had to isolate themselves even though they were not in direct contact with the president, but as a precaution as they were in contact with other people who were planning to meet him.

On March 25, 2020, President Putin addressed the nation and announced that April 1 would mark the start of a “week without work” as the coronavirus spread rapidly in Russia.

Later, in April, a full lockdown was introduced with the closure of non-essential stores and the ban on mass gatherings, while much of the population began working from home.

At the same time, 60 members of the special flight crew of the Rossiya airline, in the service of President Putin and other senior officials of the Russian government, They were quarantined for the first time on March 26, 2020 at a hotel not far from Moscow.

Since, hundreds of pilots, doctors, drivers and other support staff, as well as the president’s visitors, spent time in quarantine in a dozen hotels across Russia to protect President Putin from infection.

Recently, it was reported that the president had received a vaccine developed in Russia, although it is not clear which one, but contracts with several “quarantine” hotels appear to be in effect well into next year.

The Russian service of the BBC estimated that the Directorate of the President of the Russian Federation, the executive body responsible for the proper functioning of the presidential team, has received some $ 84 million from the state budget for countermeasures. the pandemic.

The Russian service of the BBC found that, at least 12 hotels were used for Kremlin quarantines. These accommodations are located in Moscow and its surrounding region, annexed Crimea, as well as a location not far from the southern city of Sochi, site of the 2014 Winter Olympics and one of the favorite venues. of the world. President Putin.

There were no private hotels on the quarantine list: All places where visitors and service personnel have spent time belong to the Presidential Directorate. Some reservations are made until March 2022.

Rossiya’s flight crew appear to be the primary occupants of these hotels. The crew serves officials, including President Vladimir Putin himself, as well as Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and eight other ministers.

The BBC’s Russian service has learned that President Putin has spent much of the past year working from his residence in Sochi.

A source close to the quarantine conditions said dozens of pilots and other air personnel had to be locked out near Sochi to provide transport for the president, as well as the prime minister, minister of Foreign Affairs and many others. Among those who were quarantined were airplane and helicopter pilots.

The 75th anniversary of the Allied victory in World War II it should have been a big party in Russia.

The memory of that war and Russia’s role in defeating Nazism are key parts of the Putin government’s patriotic narrative. The celebration is said to have taken place in Red Square on May 9, Russia’s victory day.

Instead, the commemoration was moved to June 24, 2020 and held on a much smaller scale, although it still included a military parade. War veterans and celebrities shook hands with President Putin and received awards to mark the anniversary.

Bloomberg reported that before meeting the president in person, more than 200 people, including 80 ex-combatants aged 80 to 90, had to be taken into custody For two weeks.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed ahead of the June parade that “a group of veterans” was in quarantine “in excellent condition”, while stressing that it had been done as a precaution for their own good.

Russian state news agencies TASS and RIA-Novosti published identical articles, describing how “one of the hotels in Moscow” had been equipped to quarantine around 20 journalists.

They stayed in individual rooms, leaving them alone while they cleaned them. They couldn’t talk to each other face to face and could only communicate virtually.

They were not allowed to smoke or drink alcohol. The packages and packages they received from outside the quarantine hotel were not delivered to them until they had been inspected and disinfected.

Isolated journalists were fed three times a day, leaving their food and drinks outside their rooms, along with disposable cutlery. Anyone who came into contact with them wore full personal protective suits.

There have also been reports of regional government officials isolating themselves before President Putin’s visits. For example, in the city of Sarov, in the Nizhny Novgorod region, local authorities allocated US $ 13,000 for measures “aimed at preventing the spread of coronavirus infection during the visit of the President of the Federation of Russia”.

The BBC’s Russian service has learned that approximately 20 Sarov local administration staff isolated in ex-combatants’ pension. Expenses for her stay included “walnut” wood beds, bedding sets, an iron, and four security safes.

The BBC asked the Kremlin spokesman about the general and comprehensive precautions taken to protect President Putin and whether, to his knowledge, other countries had implemented similar practices. Dmitry Peskov declined to comment.

BBC Mundo