<p>Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Friday defended his government's record fighting the coronavirus and ruled out a change in strategy after the official death toll surged past 50,000.</p>.<p>The Latin American nation recently overtook Britain to become the third hardest-hit country in terms of total virus deaths, after Brazil and the United States.</p>.<p>On Thursday the Mexican health ministry reported a total of 50,517 deaths and 462,690 infections in the nation of more than 128 million.</p>.<p>But Lopez Obrador said that in terms of deaths relative to population size, "we have not been so hard hit."</p>.<p>He said that while the situation is painful, on that basis Mexico ranks fifth in the Americas, behind the United States, Brazil, Chile and Peru.</p>.<p><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/coronavirus-news-live-updates-unlock-30-rules-india-maharashtra-karnataka-delhi-tamil-nadu-mumbai-bengaluru-chennai-ahmedabad-new-delhi-total-cases-deaths-recoveries-today-covid-19-coronavirus-vaccine-covid-vaccine-updates-869265.html"><strong>For latest updates on coronavirus outbreak, click here</strong></a></p>.<p>"And if we compare ourselves with Europe, there are more deaths in Spain, France and England than in Mexico," he told a news conference in the northwestern state of Baja California Sur.</p>.<p>Critics say the Mexican authorities have not done enough testing to establish the true extent of infections and deaths.</p>.<p>But Lopez Obrador defended his team in charge of fighting the pandemic, including his coronavirus czar Hugo Lopez-Gatell.</p>.<p>"There is no change" in strategy, said the leftist leader when asked about demands from his opponents for a shift in tactics and the resignation of Lopez-Gatell.</p>.<p>Lopez Obrador added that his government had increased the number of intensive care beds to 12,000, from 2,800 at the start of the crisis.</p>.<p>"No one has been left unattended," he said, while offering condolences to families of the victims.</p>.<p>"Every loss of human life is a tragedy. It is a family, they are not numbers, they are not data," he said.</p>
<p>Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Friday defended his government's record fighting the coronavirus and ruled out a change in strategy after the official death toll surged past 50,000.</p>.<p>The Latin American nation recently overtook Britain to become the third hardest-hit country in terms of total virus deaths, after Brazil and the United States.</p>.<p>On Thursday the Mexican health ministry reported a total of 50,517 deaths and 462,690 infections in the nation of more than 128 million.</p>.<p>But Lopez Obrador said that in terms of deaths relative to population size, "we have not been so hard hit."</p>.<p>He said that while the situation is painful, on that basis Mexico ranks fifth in the Americas, behind the United States, Brazil, Chile and Peru.</p>.<p><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/coronavirus-news-live-updates-unlock-30-rules-india-maharashtra-karnataka-delhi-tamil-nadu-mumbai-bengaluru-chennai-ahmedabad-new-delhi-total-cases-deaths-recoveries-today-covid-19-coronavirus-vaccine-covid-vaccine-updates-869265.html"><strong>For latest updates on coronavirus outbreak, click here</strong></a></p>.<p>"And if we compare ourselves with Europe, there are more deaths in Spain, France and England than in Mexico," he told a news conference in the northwestern state of Baja California Sur.</p>.<p>Critics say the Mexican authorities have not done enough testing to establish the true extent of infections and deaths.</p>.<p>But Lopez Obrador defended his team in charge of fighting the pandemic, including his coronavirus czar Hugo Lopez-Gatell.</p>.<p>"There is no change" in strategy, said the leftist leader when asked about demands from his opponents for a shift in tactics and the resignation of Lopez-Gatell.</p>.<p>Lopez Obrador added that his government had increased the number of intensive care beds to 12,000, from 2,800 at the start of the crisis.</p>.<p>"No one has been left unattended," he said, while offering condolences to families of the victims.</p>.<p>"Every loss of human life is a tragedy. It is a family, they are not numbers, they are not data," he said.</p>