Apr 30, 2020 - World

Russian prime minister tests positive for coronavirus

Orion Rummler

In this image, Putin and the prime minister have a telemeeting — Vladimir Putin holds a meeting with Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin on April 30. Photo: Alexei Druzhinin\TASS via Getty Images

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin told President Vladimir Putin in a televised meeting on Thursday that he had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Why it matters: Mishustin is one of just a handful of major elected world leaders to test positive for the virus. U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson tested positive in early April and was forced to step away from his work for several weeks, including for a stint in intensive care.

Mishustin said he will and temporarily step back from his work, the Moscow Times reports.

The big picture: Russia, which has been on lockdown since early March, has reported more than 100,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus but only 1,073 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins.

Russia overtook China and Iran in confirmed cases this week, though experts doubt whether any of these authoritarian countries are reporting accurate numbers.

Go deeper: Russia goes after coronavirus in latest health misinformation push

Add Axios on Google

Russian prime minister tests positive for coronavirus

What to read next