Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin paid his last respects to last Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev on Thursday, as he will not be able to attend the official farewell ceremony later this week, the Kremlin has said, RT reported.
In a press call with journalists, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that the President will be unable to attend the September 3 funeral for the former Soviet leader due to a tight schedule.
He stated that Putin personally paid his last respects to Gorbachev on Thursday by visiting the Central Clinical Hospital in Moscow, where the former leader’s body is currently is, RT reported.
Peskov added that Gorbachev’s funeral will be carried out in part as a state funeral, meaning that there will be a guard of honour and the state will assist in organising the farewell ceremony on Saturday.
Gorbachev passed away at the age of 91 on Tuesday. He was the last leader of the Soviet Union and his tenure saw the fall of the Berlin Wall, the end of the Cold War, and the subsequent breakup of the USSR.
He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990.
–IANS