Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol said on Monday that the omicron wave has passed its peak and is beginning to subside.

The minister presented the assessment during a government meeting on COVID-19 responses, noting the number of new infections fell to 187-thousand on Monday compared to 490-thousand tallied last Wednesday.

Kwon said, however, that the number of critical cases and deaths could soar two to three weeks after the peak, vowing efforts to contain the possible rise.

He added that the nation cannot let its guard down because the so-called stealth omicron, which is more transmissible than the original omicron variant, has now become the dominant variant sublineage in this country as well.

The minister said in light of "hidden infections" that have not been detected, the government must maintain more careful monitoring to confirm with certainty that the omicron wave has positively begun to decline.