Hong Kong secures stronger mainland support in fighting 5th wave of COVID-19

China's central authorities have agreed to support the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government in taking all measures needed to contain the fifth wave of COVID-19, a senior official said here Saturday.

John Lee, Chief Secretary for Administration of the HKSAR government, told a news conference here that the central government and Guangdong Province will take measures to ensure the supply of food and daily necessities to Hong Kong, and five task forces will be established to strengthen Hong Kong's capacities in testing and quarantine, among others.

Hong Kong does not plan to impose a lockdown at the current stage, said Lee, who led a delegation of Hong Kong officials to meet with mainland officials on Saturday in the neighboring southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, where they discussed ways to help Hong Kong to curb the latest resurgence of COVID-19.

Due to the rapid spread of the virus, Hong Kong has encountered bottlenecks in facilities, and when such issues are resolved, Hong Kong will be containing COVID-19 in a more effective way, said Lee.

Hong Kong's current anti-epidemic strategy is consistent with that of the Chinese mainland, which is to promptly detect and precisely contain the spread of the virus to save lives, according to Lee, who said he believes that the current social-distancing measures will produce results.

The HKSAR government will prioritize protecting the people's lives as well as public health and safety, he said, noting that the "dynamic zero-case" strategy can best achieve this goal.