 is pressing China to provide 'full access' to investigate Covid origins as it looks to dispatch another research team to the country. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director-general, said he is ready to carry out another mission to probe the cause of the pandemic after its first investigation in 2021 proved inconclusive. He also urged other countries to apply similar pressure on China to open up during upcoming bilateral meetings . China has been criticised for its lack of transparency when disclosing data about early cases as well as the viruses studied at its virology lab, while the WHO was accused of being too lenient on China's slow initial response. Dr Tedros's comments come as world leaders prepare to meet for the first time to discuss pandemic preparedness at high-level meetings during the UN's General Assembly in New York, which starts on Monday. 'We're pressing China to give full access, and we are asking countries to raise it during their bilateral meetings – [to urge Beijing] to cooperate,' Dr Tedros told The Financial Times. 'We have already asked in writing to give us information… and also [are] willing to send a team if they allow us to do so.' Dr Tedros rejected accusations of leniency, telling the FT that the health body worked with China as it took steps to limit the virus, and later openly criticised Beijing when it did not allow the organisation to effectively probe the origins of Covid-19. The two most prominent theories are either a zoonotic jump from animals to humans at Wuhan's wet food markets or contagion stemming from an accidental leak from the city's virology laboratory. No scientific consensus has emerged from the debate, and Dr Tedros reiterated that all options remained 'on the table'. 'Unless we get evidence beyond reasonable doubt, we cannot just say this or that,' he said. The original WHO mission was held in China in early 2021, but returned an inconclusive and highly criticised report , cit){kind=link}
World Health Organization urges countries to put pressure on Beijing at UN summit in New York
The World Health Organization (WHO) is pressing China to provide “full access” to investigate Covid origins as it looks to dispatch another research team to the country.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director-general, said he is ready to carry out another mission to probe the cause of the pandemic after its first investigation in 2021 proved inconclusive. He also urged other countries to apply similar pressure on China to open up during upcoming bilateral meetings.
China has been criticised for its lack of transparency when disclosing data about early cases as well as the viruses studied at its virology lab, while the WHO was accused of being too lenient on China’s slow initial response.
Dr Tedros’s comments come as world leaders prepare to meet for the first time to discuss pandemic preparedness at high-level meetings during the UN’s General Assembly in New York, which starts on Monday.