Why the ‘Explosive’ Outbreak of COVID -19 in North Korea Is Alarming –

North Korea declared a “state of emergency” on Thursday after officials announced the first outbreak of COVID-19 in the country, a dark time for an isolated country as most of its citizens remain vaccinated against the virus.

Just a day later, North Korea said it had a new heat spread “to explode” Across the country, at least 350,000 people have been infected since April and caused at least six deaths, including a confirmed associated with coronavirus. At least 18,000 people were diagnosed with fever nationwide on Thursday alone, while more than 187,000 people were isolated and treated.

“The cause of the fever, which cannot be determined, has been raging across the country since the end of April and more than 350,000 people have contracted the fever in a short period of time,” said KCNA, a North Korean state-owned company. . Friday. The agency added that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said: “The most important challenge and the highest task of our party is to reverse the immediate public health crisis at an early stage, restore stability to prevent epidemics and protect health and well -being “. Of our people ».

The numbers reflect what many other countries experienced with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. But for North Korea, it has really lost itself over the past two years and while maintaining stable power . to its people, the eruption poses a major public health challenge and raises deep concerns that it could lead to a humanitarian crisis.

State media reported on Thursday that authorities had found the first case of a highly contagious Omicron variant of the coronavirus, with rare access from Pyongyang. All cities and counties of North Korea are mandated to strengthen detention to prevent any spread.

NK News reported that some experts believe a large-scale military parade in North Korea on April 25 could be a super spread event that triggered ongoing disease. Tens of thousands of masked North Koreans attended the event which celebrated the 90th anniversary of the country’s army.

Kim herself made the mask public on Thursday, the first time she would do so. Yonhap News said the decision is likely to prove this Problem situation North Korea is in the latest situation.

The New York Times noted that North Korea has not received any vaccine donations for COVID-19 from other countries and has a dismal public health system. Any efforts on its health infrastructure will also be exacerbated by the two -year closure of its borders with China, its main trading partner, and harsh United Nations sanctions on its ballistic weapons programs.

“North Korea’s poor public health system has put them in a corner: to avoid COVID, they have properly sealed the borders. [up]”But it also hinders most of the import of food and medicines. Society is weak,” he wrote on Twitter.

South Korean officials have expressed hope that any requests for help from the North will help resume diplomatic talks that have been stalled for years. Seoul’s Unification Ministry, which focuses on relations between the two countries, said the country would provide medical and other assistance to the north if requested. The Associated Press report.

The United States said Thursday it has no plans to share vaccines in Pyongyang, where White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki accuses the regime of focusing on military power rather than medical supplies.

“We continue to support international efforts to provide basic humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable North Koreans and it is, of course, a larger part of the DPRK that continues to exploit its own citizens by not accepting such kind of help. Psaki said on Thursday. “These are not just vaccines. It is also a series of humanitarian aid that can greatly help people and nations, and instead divert their resources to develop their own illegal nuclear and ballistic missile programs.