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Thursday, September 1, 2022
From the Liveblog of
Thursday, September 1, 2022
Kremlin says Putin won’t attend Gorbachev funeral, but pays tribute
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Russia's President Vladimir Putin, right, talks with former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev at the start of a news conference at the Castle of Gottorf in Schleswig, northern Germany, Dec. 21, 2004. (AP/Heribert Proepper)
MOSCOW — The Kremlin says that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend the weekend funeral of former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev but has paid tribute to him.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says Russian President Vladimir Putin visited a Moscow hospital where Mikhail Gorbachev’s body is being kept before Saturday’s funeral.
Peskov tells reporters that Putin’s schedule wouldn’t allow him to attend Saturday’s farewell ceremony, but paid tribute to late Soviet leader.
Asked if Gorbachev will be given a state funeral, Peskov says the funeral will have “elements” of a state funeral, such as honorary guards and other formalities.
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