Doubts still over N Korea’s Covid response

SEOUL: Experts have questioned North Korea’s claim that it is achieving ‘‘good results’’ in its battle against a Covid19 outbreak, as the number of people with symptoms of the virus surpassed 2 million yesterday.

The regime reported 263,370 new fever cases yesterday and two deaths, taking the total caseload to 2.24 million, including 65 deaths, according to state news agency KCNA.

It did not report how many of those cases had tested positive for Covid but said the country was seeing ‘‘good results’’.

The rising caseload and a lack of medical resources and vaccines has led the UN human rights agency to warn of ‘‘devastating’’ consequences for North Korea’s 25 million people. World Health Organisation officials fear deadlier new variants appearing.

Cases of fever reported by the government had declined in the capital Pyongyang but risen in rural provinces. The figures were unlikely to be fully accurate, either due to error or deliberate manipulation, said Martyn Williams, a researcher at the USbased observer 38

North. ‘‘I doubt they represent the exact picture,’’ he tweeted.

Some North Korea watchers believe the regime was forced to acknowledge the Covid19 outbreak last week because attempting to conceal the virus’s spread would have been futile and could have fuelled public discontent with the country’s leader, Kim Jongun. They believe North Korean authorities underreport deaths to prove an effective response.

Kwak Gil Sup, head of One Korea Centre, a website specialising in North Korea affairs, said while North Korea was partly using the outbreak as a propaganda tool to cast Kim’s leadership in a favourable light, it had ‘‘a Plan B’’ and ‘‘a Plan C’’ to seek Chinese and other foreign aid if the pandemic got out of hand.

South Korean officials said it was hard to draw a conclusion as it was unclear how North Korea calculated fever or Covid patient statistics.

South Korea and the US have both offered to help North Korea fight the virus, including sending aid, but have not received a response. — Guardian Newspapers/Agencies