The United States on Wednesday said that the restrictions imposed on flyers from China are because of the "lack of adequate and transparent" data from Beijing over the omicron subvariants that has the potential to spread beyond its borders.
While responding to a query about imposing restrictions on flyers from China, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, "I'll say that there's no cause for retaliation..."
"Some of these measures are disproportionate and simply unacceptable. We firmly reject using COVID measures for political purposes and will take corresponding measures in response to varying situations based on the principle of reciprocity," Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning sai
Australian Health Minister Mark Butler said the nation has decided to follow the position of countries across Asia, North America and Europe to introduce measures amid the "absence of comprehensive information about the situation in China".
World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Friday said that the global body remains concerned over the evolving situation in China as the COVID-19 infections witness a new spike in the country after curbs were eased.
China's recent exit from zero-Covid could lead to nearly 1 million deaths, according to CNN. After lifting covid curbs this month, the second-largest country braces for an unprecedented wave of infections from its major cities.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said that many people protested against COVID restrictions across the world, but in India they followed them enthusiastically.
According to CNN, several workers across China have taken down some of the outward symbols of the nation's zero-Covid regulations, removing health code scanning signs from metro station walls and closing some gates after the Chinese government announced removing curbs.
This comes less than two weeks after largescale protests gripped the country against the zero covid policy. This announcement has brought relief to millions of people under various restrictions since the start of the pandemic.
According to a report by US-based entertainment outlet The Hollywood Reporter, a video went viral across the Chinese social media portal 'WeChat' where purported protesters from Shanghai are seen chanting, "I Wanna See a Movie!"
Several videos circulating on social media have shown a crowd chanting the slogan "Communist Party step down, Down with Xi Jinping" in unison over a deadly fire in Urumqi, the capital of China's Xinjiang region that has unleashed excessive public outrage.
This large-scale protest was apparently sparked by an apartment block fire in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang province, which killed at least 10 people on Thursday and has acted as a catalyst for searing public anger.