China does not report new local cases of Covid-19 for the first time since July, as Delta outbreak slows

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China has been facing the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant since July 20, when a cluster of Covid-19 infections was detected among airport cleaning staff in the eastern city of Nanjing.

Since then, it has become the worst outbreak China has seen since 2020, spreading to more than half of the country’s 31 provinces and infecting more than 1,200 people. Delta-driven growing cases were seen as the biggest challenge of China’s zero-tolerance virus-free policy.

Local authorities responded by placing tens of millions of residents under strict closure, conducting massive testing and tracking campaigns, and restricting national travel.

And on Monday, the country reported 21 imported cases and zero symptomatic local transmission infections, the first time no local cases have been reported since July 16th. China maintains a separate count of symptomatic and asymptomatic cases and does not include asymptomatic carriers of the virus in the official count of confirmed cases.

If the trend continues, China could become the first country in the world to control a major outbreak of the Delta.

Double to zero-Covid

China is one of the countries, including Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, that have tried to completely eradicate Covid-19 within its borders.

Authorities closed borders to almost all foreigners, imposed strict quarantines for arrivals, and launched specific closures and aggressive testing and tracking policies to wipe out any cases that escaped the defenses. And for more than a year, these measures had been very successful in keeping cases close to zero.

But new outbreaks driven by the Delta variant are motivating some countries to rethink their approach.
In Australia, several major cities, including Sydney, Melbourne and the capital Canberra, have been placed under weeks of blockade, but cases have continued to rise. On Saturday, the country recorded the highest number of cases in a single day since the pandemic began, while thousands took to the streets to protest the prolonged closures.
In an opinion piece published Sunday in the Australian media, Prime Minister Scott Morrison hinted at the end of the country’s zero Covid-19 restrictions, saying the blockades “are sadly necessary for now”, but “will not be needed for too long”. He said the Australian government intended to change its approach from reducing the number of cases to examining how many people were severely ill with Covid-19 and in need of hospitalization.
Singapore has also set out a roadmap to move towards a “new normal” of coexistence with Covid-19.
China, meanwhile, appears to be firmly in favor of its zero-covid approach, with state television station CCTV warning Monday that the pandemic is not over and that people should not be neglected in preventing it. ‘epidemic.
The country has also continued to increase its vaccination push. As of Sunday, it has administered more than 1.94 billion doses of nationally manufactured Covid-19 vaccines, according to the NHC. More than 135 doses have been administered per 100 people, a higher proportion than in the United Kingdom and the United States.

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