Russia says 780 people died from coronavirus-related causes over the past 24 hours, the highest number of fatalities confirmed in a single day since the beginning of the pandemic.
The number of newly registered cases reached 24,702 nationwide for the same period, the anti-coronavirus crisis center reported, bringing the total number of cases to 5.7 million. The overall coronavirus death toll stands at 144,492.
Critics, however, say the actual numbers of both infections and deaths are likely much higher due to the misreporting of some deaths and the intentional hiding of others.
Russia is struggling with a spike in cases that health officials have blamed on the contagious delta variant and a lagging vaccination campaign.
Only around 15 percent of the population have received a vaccine, with many citing distrust of the locally developed Sputnik V vaccine as the reason.
Despite the surge, the Kremlin has said there are no plans to impose another national lockdown.
Moscow, where the mayor has said the situation is beginning to stabilize, reported 4,991 new COVID-19 cases.
