Residents of Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, have been ordered to stay at home from Wednesday to Sunday and undergo multiple temperature checks daily, Seoul-based NK News reported, citing a government document. This text does not mention Covid-19, over which the dictatorship announced victory in August 2022.
But the North Korean government describes the common cold as a new disease spreading in the capital. The Korean peninsula is currently in the grips of a Siberian cold snap, which meteorologists are describing, with temperatures falling as low as -22C in Pyongyang. Citing sources in Pyongyang, NK News said on Tuesday that residents in North Korea’s largest city appeared to be stocking up for a possible lockdown. It is not known if other areas will be affected by similar restrictions and state media have not announced any new measures.
A connection to the Covid-19 epidemic in China?
North Korea has strictly closed its borders since the pandemic began, announcing its first-ever case of Covid-19 in May 2022 before announcing its victory over the disease three months later. But the country is allowing itself some exchanges with China, a key trading partner and neighbor that is facing a wave of infections after ending its drastic “zero Covid” policy.
The World Health Organization has long cast doubt on Pyongyang’s Covid-19 statistics and the country’s claims that the outbreak is under control. According to experts, North Korea has one of the worst health systems in the world with poorly equipped hospitals, few intensive care units and no treatment for Covid-19. According to expert sources, Pyongyang has not vaccinated its approximately 25 million inhabitants. Other information suggests the country would have received vaccines from China.