Xi Stays Silent as Covid Zero Strategy He Championed Crumbles
- China’s leader hasn’t commented on Covid since major changes
- Lack of clear messaging fuels worries about future U-turns
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Xi Jinping has staked his personal prestige on few policies like Covid Zero, hailing China’s decision to “put people first” as morally superior to the US and once describing the pathogen as the “devil virus.”
Now, as authorities rapidly dismantle the strategy and state media urges citizens to “take primary responsibility for their own health” amid mass outbreaks, Xi himself has been silent on the shift. He has yet to make remarks that could be read as an acknowledgment of the rethink more than two weeks after a rare wave of protests prompted it.