themoscowtimes--2020-06-27--Russia's Coronavirus Cases Rise to 627K

Russia's Coronavirus Cases Rise to 627K

Moscow lifted restrictions including compulsory travel passes on June 8 , a move welcomed by residents who rushed out to enjoy the streets and parks .
Many other regions are lifting lockdown restrictions as Russia is preparing to hold a July 1 national vote despite the pandemic .
President Vladimir Putin is seeking public backing for constitutional amendments that would allow him to stay on at the Kremlin beyond his current term .
Critics have cast doubt on Russia 's low official mortality rate and accused authorities of under-reporting to play down the scale of the crisis .
Russia attributes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ testing which has identified many cases with mild or no coronavirus symptoms .
The Health Ministry is now adjusting how it reports numbers to include all deaths believed to be related to the virus even if the direct cause of death was another condition or the patient tested negative .
Former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin , a liberal politician known for his outspoken comments , said Russia 's health system requires more funds and modernization in many regions .
`` Medicine is significantly underfunded even according to the current norms and also it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , who heads the Audit Chamber that examines government spending , said in an interview with the state-run TASS state news agency .
`` We will carry out a check and show these figures , '' he added .
Nevertheless the economist said Russia `` is not doing a bad job with the pandemic , '' crediting the role of the military , which has built emergency facilities .

The highest number of new cases were in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Russia's fatality rate has remained low compared to other badly-hit countries, raising speculation that Moscow could be underreporting figures.
Russian authorities began easing anti-virus measures in June ahead of a massive World War II military parade in Moscow and a nationwide vote on constitutional reforms that now allow President Vladimir Putin to stay in power until 2036.
Both events were initially postponed due the epidemic.
Moscow opened cinemas and theaters on Aug. 1. In the capital, masks are mandatory in stores and on public transport but not in the streets.
Several institutes in Russia are working on a coronavirus vaccine.
The Russian Defense Ministry has said it developed a "safe" vaccine following clinical trials on a group of volunteers.
The trials are ongoing, and the Defense Ministry expects clinical trials to be fully completed in the coming weeks.
AFP contributed reporting to this article.


themoscowtimes--2020-06-28--Trump Denies He Was Briefed on Russia-Taliban Bounty Intelligence

U.S. President Donald Trump denied Sunday he had been briefed on intelligence that reportedly showed Russia had offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan .
In a pair of early morning tweets , Trump angrily slammed the report by The New York Times as `` Probably just another phony Times hit job , just like their failed Russia Hoax . ''
`` Nobody briefed or told me , @ VP Pence , or Chief of Staff @ MarkMeadows about the so-called attacks on our troops in Afghanistan by Russians , as reported through an 'anonymous source @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , '' he wrote .
`` Everybody is denying it & there have not been many attacks on us ... . ''
'' Nobody 's been tougher on Russia than the Trump Administration . ''
On Friday , the Times reported that U.S. intelligence had concluded that a Russian military intelligence unit offered rewards to Taliban-linked militants to kill troops of the U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan .
The rewards were purportedly incentives to target U.S. forces as Trump tries to withdraw troops from the conflict-torn country — one of the militants ' key @ @ @ @ @ @ @ war .
Citing anonymous officials , The Times said Trump was briefed on the findings in March , but has not decided how to respond .
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Saturday issued a denial similar to Trump 's but left open the possibility that such intelligence existed .
`` This does not speak to the merit of the alleged intelligence but to the inaccuracy of The New York Times story erroneously suggesting that President Trump was briefed on this matter , '' McEnany said .

In a pair of early morning tweets, Trump angrily slammed the report by The New York Times as "Probably just another phony Times hit job, just like their failed Russia Hoax."
U.S. President Donald Trump denied Sunday he had been briefed on intelligence that reportedly showed Russia had offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.
"Nobody briefed or told me, @VP Pence, or Chief of Staff @MarkMeadows about the so-called attacks on our troops in Afghanistan by Russians, as reported through an 'anonymous source' by the Fake News @nytimes," he wrote.
"Everybody is denying it & there have not been many attacks on us...."
"Nobody's been tougher on Russia than the Trump Administration."
On Friday, the Times reported that U.S. intelligence had concluded that a Russian military intelligence unit offered rewards to Taliban-linked militants to kill troops of the U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan.
The rewards were purportedly incentives to target U.S. forces as Trump tries to withdraw troops from the conflict-torn country — one of the militants' key demands — and end America's longest war.
Citing anonymous officials, The Times said Trump was briefed on the findings in March, but has not decided how to respond.
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Saturday issued a denial similar to Trump's but left open the possibility that such intelligence existed.
"This does not speak to the merit of the alleged intelligence but to the inaccuracy of The New York Times story erroneously suggesting that President Trump was briefed on this matter," McEnany said.
Skepticism Trump not briefed
Others were skeptical that Trump would not have been informed of such an explosive conclusion.
"The idea that Trump wouldn't be briefed on Russia putting a bounty on U.S. troops is even crazier than him being briefed and doing nothing," Ben Rhodes, a former national security aide to Trump's predecessor Barack Obama, wrote on Twitter.
The Taliban have denied the report, reiterating that they were committed to an accord signed with Washington in February that paves the way for withdrawing all foreign forces from Afghanistan by next year.
The militants also said homemade explosives account for most fatalities among U.S. forces.
"The 19-year jihad of the Islamic Emirate is not indebted to the beneficence of any intelligence organ or foreign country," the Taliban said in a statement issued in Kabul.
The group, widely believed to have received years of support from Pakistani intelligence, also denied previous U.S. accusations it was given arms by Russia.
"The Islamic Emirate has made use of weapons, facilities and tools... that were already present in Afghanistan or are war spoils frequently seized from the opposition in battles," it said.
Russia has also denounced the report, with its embassy in Washington tweeting that the "baseless and anonymous accusations" in the Times story had "already led to direct threats to the life of employees" at its embassies in Washington and London.
"Stop producing #fakenews that provoke life threats, @nytimes," the embassy added in a later tweet.


themoscowtimes--2020-06-28--Russia Mining Giant Reports Waste Spill at Arctic Plant

Russian mining giant Norilsk Nickel said on Sunday it had stopped the discharge of wastewater from one of its Arctic @ @ @ @ @ an unprecedented fuel leak nearby sparked a state of emergency .
The incident occurred at @ @ @ @ @ the Arctic city of Norilsk , the company said , when liquids used to process @ @ @ @ @ a reservoir . ''
`` Measures were taken to stop '' the removal of the @ @ @ @ @ the company said , adding that there was no threat of waste leaking .
A @ @ @ @ @ Ministry however told news agency RIA Novosti that the discharge of toxic substances could pose @ @ @ @ @ Kharayelakh river .
The Investigative Committee , which probes serious crimes , said it had @ @ @ @ @ dumping of liquid waste into the tundra '' on the site of the facility and @ @ @ @ @

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