The prime minister asked for his car to be stopped on the way from a fish processing plant to a meeting on the development of the fishing industry. He made a brief stop at a branch of the 36.6 pharmacy chain, where he asked to be shown a list of essential medicines with their maximum authorised retail prices.

"Have you had any customer complaints? Are you fulfilling the requirements for essential medicines?" Mr Putin asked the pharmacist. The prime minister also asked for the pharmacy staff to find Arbidol on the list.

After some bumbling, the pharmacy staff found Arbidol, whose maximum price was listed at 267 rubles.

"We're a bit nervous," said a female employee of the pharmacy. "It's not every day that we get such visitors."

"We're not in a hurry," the prime minister replied with a smile.

"At our pharmacy, Arbidol costs 212 rubles, which is a lot cheaper than on the list," said the pharmacist. The prime minister verified this.

"We re-priced it at the proper time," the pharmacist added. "Now the main thing is for suppliers not to let us down."

The prime minister also enquired with customers about the drug prices. Customers explained that there were some municipally-owned pharmacies where the prices were even cheaper.

"I have now seen the list of vitally important and essential medicines, and the prices at this pharmacy are cheaper than those on the list," said Mr Putin. "If there are places where the prices are even lower, that's great."

"You have a pretty good chain," Mr Putin added, referring to 36.6. "It is included in the list of strategically important companies and has been granted guarantees. It's good that you justify the confidence of the state and customers."