The Kremlin will not change Putin's schedule because of "Arcturus" Vladimir Putin

No changes to the schedule of President Vladimir Putin and additional restrictions in the Kremlin due to the expected wave of infections of the new subspecies of the coronavirus XBB 1.16 Arcturus are planned, said press secretary of the head of state Dmitry Peskov, RBC correspondent reports.

“We still have certain restrictions, precautions, testing systems. But there is no talk of any reinforcements yet, ”Peskov said.

Arcturus is a genetic variant of the Omicron strain. The virus has already become widespread in India, Singapore, and cases have also been recorded in the USA , Germany, and China. Four cases of Arcturus infection have already been registered in Russia. On April 19, the Gamaleya Center reported that they had found this subtype of coronavirus in three samples of Moscow patients.

The head of Rospotrebnadzor, Anna Popova, warned of a wave of incidence of Arcturus at the end of May. “Now the vacation period will begin, then everyone will gather - and this surge can be,” she explained. According to her, the new version of COVID-19 is more contagious than its predecessors. In addition, according to foreign scientists, the virus can bypass previously formed immunity, Popova noted.

The symptoms of Arcturus are the same as for the other strains of this group, and in addition to them, the symptoms of conjunctivitis and fever (not in all cases), said virologists interviewed by RBC.