Renowned Russian poet Yevtushenko dies at 84

Moscow, April 2 Russian Soviet-era poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko died of a cardiac arrest on Saturday in Oklahoma, US , at the age of 84.

Yevtushenko's wife was quoted by Xinhua news agency as saying that the poet had been hospitalised in serious condition and the doctors were conducting medical examinations.

Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed condolences to Yevtushenko's family, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding: "His legacy is an integral part of the Russian culture."

The poet, who was also a novelist, movie director and essayist, was nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1963.

Yevtushenko and his family moved to the US in 1991.