WHO to Dispatch Team Members for COVID-19 Virus Origin Investigation in China

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The World Health Organization (WHO) announced that it will separately dispatch a team of experts to China to investigate the origin of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Although WHO has emphasized that this investigation is an academic inquiry, it is being interpreted as a move closely related to the controversy surrounding the theory proposed by the U.S. Donald Trump administration that the virus originated from a Chinese virus laboratory and the related Chinese accountability debate.

According to foreign media such as CNBC, on the 6th (local time), Maria Van Kerkhove, head of WHO's Emerging Diseases Team, said at a virtual press briefing held at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, "We are discussing sending experts to China to investigate the origin of COVID-19," adding, "The focus will be on academic issues to find the origin of zoonotic infections and what happened during the initial exposure to other animals." Previously, WHO has dispatched investigation teams three times since the first reports of COVID-19 outbreaks were received.

As the controversy over the origin of COVID-19 between the U.S. and China continues, there are concerns that WHO’s current investigation could lead to greater disputes. On the 4th, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus directly refuted the Trump administration’s theory by stating, "The U.S. theory that COVID-19 originated in China is based on speculation, and we have not received any evidence from the U.S. government," adding, "If the U.S. sends any evidence, we will gladly accept it."

Meanwhile, the Trump administration in the U.S. has been emphasizing Chinese accountability by repeatedly claiming that COVID-19 leaked from the 'Wuhan Virus Research Institute' located in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. China, in response, has countered by asserting that COVID-19 originated not in China but in the United States.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.