Kim masks up as Pyongyang admits that Covid has arrived
KIM JONG-UN, the North Korean dictator, has been seen wearing a surgical mask for the first time after his isolated nation confirmed a Covid outbreak.
Images on state media showed Mr Kim at a meeting with officials, who were also wearing masks.
The virus could wreak havoc in the impoverished country because it has repeatedly shunned international offers of vaccines.
Earlier, the state-run Korean Central News Agency said an unspecified number of people in the capital Pyongyang had tested positive for the highly transmissible omicron variant.
“A serious situation has been created due to the introduction of a stealth mutant virus into our precincts,” KCNA said, adding that an emergency meeting of the ruling Korean Workers’ Party Politburo had been called to discuss spread-prevention measures.
A sudden lockdown in the capital Pyongyang on Tuesday was the first sign that something may be amiss in a country that has previously claimed a perfect record in keeping out the virus – a claim that had been met with global scepticism.
The edict reportedly triggered a rush to get home and the authorities instructed citizens not to leave their buildings. The lockdown comes after overland trade between North Korea and China was suspended in late April because of a sharp increase in Covid cases in the Chinese border provinces of Liaoning and Jilin.
Despite being surrounded by Russia, China and South Korea, all of which have been battling increases in Covid cases in recent months, the country has remained one of the few in the world not to pursue a vaccine programme and has rejected offers of aid from the United Nations and China.
Its military dictatorship is suspected of shunning vaccines offered by the Un-backed Covax distribution programme because it would be required to submit to international monitoring.
KCNA said that Mr Kim had ordered officials to push ahead with scheduled construction, agricultural development and other state projects because “public unity” would “win in this antipandemic fight”.