Putin to snub Gorbachev funeral due to work schedule

Russian president lays wreath at hospital where Soviet leader died but will not attend service, Kremlin says

Vladimir Putin will not attend the funeral of Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union, the Kremlin has said, in what will be seen as an extraordinary snub by the Russian president.

Gorbachev, who died on Tuesday at 91, would also not receive an official state funeral, a Kremlin spokesperson indicated, making him the first leader since Nikita Khrushchev not to be given that honour.