Name? Xi Jinping
Westphalian identity? Chinese
Age? 68
Why is he in the news? China’s President Xi Jinping has told Hong Kong’s government to take “all necessary measures” to bring the territory’s Omicron-fueled outbreak of COVID-19 under control as it overwhelms some hospitals.
Why do we care? Because Xi is seeing a problem developing in Hong Kong which could soon become reality in mainland China. In Hong Kong, the vulnerable age groups’ vaccine rates are low: 70-79 (68%) and 80+ (39%). To add to trouble, they have mostly chosen the Chinese vaccine Sinovac which has shown little protection against the Omicon variant. This is where China’s Sinovac vaccinated population is at risk. After an initial success, Xi is now faced with the problem of a largely unvaccinated population and spreading Omicron cases.
Why should you care? So far, Xi has also employed a “zero-Covid” policy, meaning that whenever Covid cases are detected, entire cities of millions are quarantined for weeks. This would not affect you if China wasn’t the biggest producer of almost anything in the world. As a result, Xi’s policy approach is further pressuring global supply chains. So if you care about your Amazon packages, you care 10/1o about Xi’s Omicron-Sinovac worries.
Who else cares? Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam. As Hong Kong’s highest government official, she is responsible for the city’s Covid policy. But she also has to respond to Xi since Lam introduced a security law that allows China more control in the city. Not to mention that images of patients being treated outside hospitals will not convince Xi to open the border to mainland China any time soon.
Any further comments? Xi has navigated himself, and China, into a dead-end regarding Covid. A vulnerable population to Omicron does not allow for a change in his zero-Covid strategy. With no exit strategy in sight, an isolated China and recurring lockdowns hurt China’s basis of power and influence: its economy.
