‘Stick to zero-Covid’: Xinhua puts Xi Jinping’s stamp on China’s coronavirus strategy
- State news agency editorial appears to dismiss suggestions that the country should learn to live with the virus
- Xi personally drew up the policy and led the fight for zero-Covid, it says
The editorial by state news agency Xinhua appeared to end suggestions that the country should try to live with Covid-19 after a nationwide spread of the Omicron variant cast doubt on China’s long-standing strategy of mass lockdowns, testing and contact tracing.
It said Xi had personally drawn up the policy and led the fight for zero-Covid.
“Ever since epidemic prevention and control became the norm, General Secretary Xi Jinping has personally directed the deployment of epidemic prevention and control work, and established the general strategy to prevent imported cases and internal rebounds and the general policy of dynamic zero-Covid,” the editorial said, referring to Xi by his Communist Party title.
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China has maintained one of the world’s strictest Covid-19 control systems, and had kept the spread at bay until February.