COVID-19 WHO Expert Team Visits Wuhan Virus Institute

WHO investigation team touring Wuhan Huanan Seafood Market
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] Peter Ben Embarek, a World Health Organization (WHO) expert team member, visited the Wuhan Virus Research Institute, which has been identified as the origin of COVID-19, on the 3rd, according to Chinese state media Global Times and other foreign media.

The Wuhan Virus Research Institute has been mentioned as the initial site of the COVID-19 outbreak. Some scientists believe that COVID-19 leaked into the outside world during experiments at the Wuhan Virus Research Institute, where viruses detected in the wild were being tested for human infection.

Earlier, Peter Daszak, a member of the expert team, said upon arriving at the institute, "We will meet key personnel here and ask all necessary questions," adding, "We expect it to be a very productive day."

After completing their visit to the institute, the WHO expert team responded to reporters' questions about the investigation results by saying, "Very interesting. There are many questions," before quickly leaving the institute.

Previously, on the 2nd, the WHO expert team also visited the Wuhan Animal Disease Center and met with key livestock surveillance staff in Hubei Province. They arrived in Wuhan on the 14th of last month, completed a 14-day quarantine, and have been conducting full-scale investigations for two weeks.

So far, the expert team's schedule included visits to a Wuhan regional hospital on the 29th of last month, the Jinintan Respiratory Hospital in Wuhan on the 30th, the Huanan Seafood Market on the 31st, the Wuhan Center for Disease Control and Prevention on February 1st, and the Animal Disease Center on the 2nd.

With the WHO expert team having completed about half of their overall schedule, Chinese authorities have claimed that the United States should also undergo the same WHO investigation as China.

Wang Wenbin (汪文斌), spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated at a regular briefing on the 2nd, "Tracing the origin of COVID-19 is a very complex and scientific issue," adding, "It involves multiple regions and countries."

Spokesperson Wang emphasized, "There are studies and media reports indicating that COVID-19 emerged in the second half of 2019," and "The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also prepared a research report stating that COVID-19 antibodies were found in some blood samples from blood donors in December 2019."

He continued, "This means that COVID-19 was already present in the United States at that time," and urged, "The United States should also invite the WHO expert team, like China, to cooperate in the investigation and research on the origin of COVID-19."

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