Russia has admitted that its number of deaths from coronavirus is more than three times higher than previously reported.
New figures show that more than 186,000 Russians died from the virus, against 55,265 that the country officially reported.
This means that Russia has the third highest number of fatalities, ahead of India and behind only the USA and Brazil.
PUTIN SIGNS BILL PROVIDING IMMUNITY OF LIFE TO THE PRESIDENTS OF RUSSIA AFTER THE SAME
A priest from the Russian Orthodox Church, on the right, leaves a red zone after visiting patients suspected of having coronavirus in a hospital in Kommunarka, near Moscow, Russia, Monday, December 28, 2020. (Sophia Sandurskaya, photo by Moscow News Agency via AP)
Russia has reported more than 3 million infections since the pandemic began, but its comparatively low lethality rate has come as a surprise.
President Vladimir Putin said it was because the country handled the pandemic so well, but others said it was partly due to the fact that an autopsy had to list COVID-19 as the leading cause of death to account.
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On Monday, the government statistics agency Rosstat said the number of deaths from all causes between January and November increased by 229,700 compared to the same period last year, according to a report by the AFP news agency.
Read more at Sky News.