The city of Moscow began to spring to life on Tuesday as it entered a new phase. (Photo by Alexander Zemlianichenko Jr/Xinhua)

Russia added 7,843 COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, taking its total to 553,301, the country's coronavirus response center said in a statement Wednesday.

The death toll rose by 194 to 7,478, while 304,342 people have recovered, including 10,036 over the last 24 hours, said the statement.

Moscow, the country's worst-hit region, reported 1,065 newly confirmed cases, taking its tally of infections to 209,745. So far, 128,385 patients have recovered in the city.

On Tuesday, 308,896 people were still under medical observation, while over 15.6 million COVID-19 tests have been conducted nationwide, Russia's consumer rights and human well-being watchdog said in a statement Wednesday.