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| U.S. Director of National Intelligence Haynes at the Senate Armed Services Committee’s hearing on the “world threat” on the 29th |
WASHINGTON — Despite the challenges China faces from the coronavirus pandemic, Chinese leader Xi Jinping is reluctant to accept vaccines from Western countries, and while China’s recent protests do not pose a threat to Communist Party rule, they could affect Mr. Xi’s personal status, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said Saturday.
Although China’s daily new coronavirus infections have approached record highs recently, some cities are taking steps to relax nucleic acid testing requirements and quarantine regulations after Xi Jinping’s “zero” policy triggered a sharp economic slowdown and public unrest.
Speaking at the annual Reagan Defense Forum in California, Haynes said that despite the social and economic impact of the coronavirus, Xi “is not willing to get a better vaccine from the West, but instead relies on the Chinese vaccine, which is not as effective as the Western vaccine against Mysteric Keron.”
“Seeing the protests and responding to them goes against what he (Xi) likes to say, which is that China is much more efficient on the government side,” Haynes said. ”
“Again, what we’re seeing so far doesn’t pose a threat to stability, regime change, or anything like that,” she said, adding, “How the protests play out in the future is important to Xi’s position.”
China has not yet approved any foreign coronavirus vaccines, opting instead to receive domestically produced vaccines. Some studies have shown that these vaccines are less effective than some foreign vaccines. Experts say this means relaxing virus prevention measures could pose a huge risk.
The White House said earlier this week that China had not asked for vaccines from the United States.
A U.S. official told Reuters “don’t expect” China to approve Western vaccines at this time.
“It seems quite far-fetched that China would give the green light to Western vaccines at this point. It’s a matter of national pride, and if they go down this path, they’re going to have to go under considerable pressure,” the official said.
(This article is based on a Reuters report.)
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