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referendum was closed, the page had been turned,” one deputy told Moskovsky Komsomolets.
Once Russia’s stay-at-home COVID hawk, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin is now getting out the vote for the Kremlin’s constitutional plebiscite on July 1. ​The mayor’s office announced today that it is offering ​“a million prizes” for voters in the plebiscite​. The “million prizes” program is technically intended to stimulate demand and help businesses recover from the city’s lockdown. Starting June 25, the mayor’s office will be raffling off 2 million vouchers, which winners can use to pay for goods and services at 3,000 stores across Moscow through the end of 2020. Moscow residents will receive a code to participate in the raffle after voting. All told, the city will be giving out 10 billion rubles ($143 million) worth of vouchers. When it comes to stimulating turnout, paying people is a proven effective method.
Å puzzle for government officials has been the delay in implementing the national projects: the launch dates of approximately 40% of activities were postponed​ due to the lockdown. Now ministers have the task of implementing everything that was previously planned, while also updating the projects to take into account Russia's new economic reality. Spending for the programme will be cut (see budget section).
Germany may introduce punitive duties on imports of natural gas from the U.S. if Washington continues pressure on the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline​, Klaus Ernst, chairman of the energy committee at the German parliament said. US Senator Ted Cruz spearheaded a bill to the Senate with the goal of extending the existing sanctions against the Nord Stream-2 pipeline, offering sanctions against insurers of the vessels building the pipeline. In response to a request for comment, Klaus said, “If this (pressure on the project from the U.S.) doesn’t finally stop, then we would have to think about serious measures to protect ourselves. For instance, punitive duties on natural gas from the U.S. are possible. The behavior of the U.S. in this issue should no longer be seen as a friendly act, it is an offence against sovereignty of Germany and the E.U.,” he said
2.21 ​Polls & Sociology
Around a third of Russians are unhappy with the state of the environment where they live​, according to a survey conducted by state-run pollster VTsIOM. In answer to the question,” how do you rate the ecological situation in the place you live?", 34% of those polled said they were not happy with the situation (down 6 points since January 2020), while 64% said they were happy with it (up 5 points). Most of those who were positive about the ecological situation were residents of Moscow and St Petersburg, as well as those who live in villages and in towns with a population under 100,000 people, VTsIOM said, as reported by Russian news agency Interfax. The majority of those who were dissatisfied with their environment where those from cities of between 100-000 and 500,000 people (40%) and 500,000 to 950,000 people (48%), the poll said. Ecological issues have been among the most prominent causes of public protest in Russia in the last few years, with demonstrations against waste disposal being held from Moscow to Murmansk Region.
President Vladimir Putin and opposition politician Alexey Navalny are the two most inspiring public figures in Russia today​, according to a new
32​ RUSSIA Country Report​ July 2020 ​ ​www.intellinews.com