(Dan Tri) – The World Health Organization (WHO) said that the second phase of investigating the origin of Covid-19 should include further investigation in China and inspection of laboratories in Wuhan.
WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (Photo: Reuters).
At a closed meeting with representatives of member states on July 16, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus proposed five priorities for the next phase of the investigation into the origin of Covid-19.
Reuters quoted a WHO statement saying that among these priorities is inspecting laboratories and research institutes operating in the area where the first cases of infection were detected in December 2019.
Mr. Tedros also asked investigators to focus on prioritizing investigations in geographical areas with the earliest signs of the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
`Investigating the origin of Covid-19 is a scientific task that needs to be separated from political factors. To achieve this, we hope China will support the next stage of this scientific process by
However, diplomatic sources said that China’s representative spoke out against the proposal at the closed meeting.
The laboratory in the Wuhan Institute of Virology became the focus of questions about the origin of Covid-19 (Photo: Times).
Before yesterday’s meeting, WHO Director General Tedros also called on China to be open, transparent and share raw data related to the early stages of the outbreak in Wuhan.
Responding to this call, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said that Beijing is considering the request, but affirmed: `China has shown the raw data to the expert group (led by WHO).
Mr. Trieu also rejected Mr. Tedros’s assertion that there is a `premature push` to eliminate the theory that the virus caused the Covid-19 pandemic.
A group of international experts led by WHO went to Wuhan to investigate the origin of Covid-19 earlier this year.
China has also repeatedly rejected the hypothesis put forth by many Western countries that SARS-CoV-2 leaked from the laboratory of the Wuhan Institute of Virology and that Beijing sought to hide the origin of the pandemic.
Nick John