Russia has reported a new daily high of Covid-19 cases, breaking its national record for the third day running as the highly contagious Omicron variants spurs surging infections.

The European country worst hit by the pandemic registered 63,205 cases over 24 hours, beating previous records of 57,212 on Saturday and 49,513 on Friday, government figures showed.

Moscow, the epicentre of Russia's outbreak, posted a new record for the fourth day in a row with 17,528 infections, Reuters reports.

President Vladimir Putin warned earlier in the month that Russia had two weeks to prepare for a surge in Omicron cases, calling for more testing and vaccinations.

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