BEIJING – China’s foreign ministry has urged World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to refrain from making “irresponsible” remarks after he stated that China’s zero-Covid policy is unsustainable.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian defended China’s pandemic-fighting measures during a regular news briefing in Beijing on Wednesday, saying China hopes the WHO Director-General can assess China’s Covid policy objectively.

“We don’t think it’s sustainable,” Ghebreyesus said on Tuesday, “given the virus’s behaviour and what we now expect in the future.”

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He had also stated, “This topic has been discussed with Chinese experts. And we warned that the strategy would be unsustainable… I believe that a change is critical.”

Increased knowledge of the virus and greater means to tackle it, according to the official, suggested it was time for a strategic shift.

China’s leaders reaffirmed their commitment to fighting the virus with severe measures and warned retaliation against opponents at home, despite the fact that strict and protracted lockdowns have taken a significant toll on the world’s second-largest economy.