Russia prepares new restrictions amid persistent virus surge

By DARIA LITVINOVA
Associated Press

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian authorities say they are preparing new restrictions to counter the unrelenting surge of coronavirus infections that has engulfed the vast country in recent weeks. The state coronavirus task force announced Thursday it was drafting legislation to expand the system of QR codes, already used in many regions to restrict access to certain public places, to include public transport, cafes and shops. The system only allows access to people who have been vaccinated, have recovered from the virus recently or can provide a negative coronavirus test no older than 72 hours. It wasn’t immediately clear when the new measures could be imposed. The task force on Thursday reported 40,759 new cases and 1,237 deaths.