Major announcement by Putin awaited in Moscow

The Kremlin press office Friday told media heads not to leave Moscow in the next few days and stand by for an important announcement by President Vladimir Putin. The CEO of the Center for Political information Alexei Mukhin did not deny that President Putin is “currently incapacitated.” Thursday, Russian Internet sites carried rumors of Putin’s death after he had not been seen in public since March 5. The rumors were not confirmed. Mukhin’s reply to the query was “no comment.”