Geneva, Switzerland
Reuters
The head of the World Health Organization gave a strident defence of his agency’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic on Wednesday, in response to US President Donald Trump’s criticism and suggestion that Washington could review its funding for the agency.
WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for unity and a halt to “politicisation” of the global health crisis, specifically urging China and the United States to show “honest leadership”.
Tedros said that he expected US funding to continue with traditional bipartisan support.
Director-General of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus attends a news conference on the situation of the coronavirus (COVID-2019), in Geneva, Switzerland, on 28th February. PICTURE: Reuters/Denis Balibouse
US contributions to the WHO in 2019 exceeded $US400 million, almost double the second largest country donor, according to US figures. The WHO website shows the United States as its top donor, contributing nearly 15 per cent of the budget.
“We have kept the world informed about the latest data, information and evidence,” Tedros said, noting that Thursday would mark 100 days since China first notified the organisation of cases of “pneumonia with unknown cause” on 31st December.
Tedros, a former foreign minister of Ethiopia, also rejected Trump’s suggestion that the WHO was “China-centric”, saying: “We are close to every nation, we are colour-blind.”
Earlier, Dr Bruce Aylward, senior adviser to Tedros, also defended the UN agency’s relationship with China, saying its work with Beijing authorities was important to understand the outbreak.
“It was absolutely critical in the early part of this outbreak to have full access to everything possible, to get on the ground and work with the Chinese to understand this,” said Aylward, who led a WHO expert mission to China in February.
In New York, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Wednesday that now was not the time to assess the global response to the pandemic, calling instead for the international community to focus on working in solidarity to stop the virus.
Tedros said his UN agency would conduct its usual assessment of its performance after the emergency and draw lessons about its strengths and weaknesses, adding: “We make mistakes like other human beings.”
He summarised his advice as: “Please, unity at national level, no using COVID for political points. Second, honest solidarity at the global level. And honest leadership from the US and China.”
“The most powerful should lead the way and please quarantine COVID politics,” he added, referring to COVID-19, the highly contagious, sometimes deadly illness caused by the new coronavirus.
Tedros said that China and United States should follow the example of the former Soviet Union and the United States who launched a 10-year global campaign in 1967 that eradicated smallpox, a disease then killing two million people annually.
Tedros rejected “racist slurs” against him, which he said had originated in Taiwan, and disclosed that he had also received a death threat during the crisis.
“We are losing people, why would I care about being attacked when people are dying?” he said, noting there were already “60,000 body bags” after more than 1.3 million infections.
“We will have many body bags in front of us if we don’t behave,” he added.
– Additional reporting by MICHAEL SHIELDS in Zurich and MICHELLE NICHOLS in New York.
CORONAVIRUS LATEST
The number of confirmed infections of the novel coronavirus exceeded 1.38 million globally and the death toll crossed 81,400, according to a Reuters tally as of 0200 GMT.
EUROPE
• The president of the European Union’s main science organisation quit over frustration at the response to the pandemic.
• British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spent a second night in intensive care and was in a stable condition, while his country was entering what scientists said was the deadliest phase of the outbreak.
• Italian ports cannot be considered safe because of the epidemic and will not let charity migrant boats dock, the government ruled.
• Spain’s daily death toll rose on Tuesday for the first time in five days, but there was still hope the lockdown might be eased as officials worked on a plan to lift some of the restrictions.
• Germany’s daily case tally increased for the second straight day after four previous days of drops.
• France should extend its lockdown for several weeks, a chief medical adviser said, after it became the fourth country to register more than 10,000 deaths.
• A French military ship is heading back to port after some staff on board showed signs of COVID-19 symptoms.
• Czech Republic’s cases rose past 5,000, but a slowing growth rate has given the government confidence to start easing some lockdown measures.
AMERICAS
• US President Donald Trump said the United States might be getting to the top of the “curve” of the outbreak and reiterated that he wants to get the economy reopened soon.
• Trump accused the WHO of being too focused on China and issuing bad advice during the outbreak, saying he would put a hold on US funding for the agency.
• Even as medical teams struggled to save an onslaught of patients and deaths hit new highs, the number of hospitalizations seemed to be leveling off in New York state.
• COVID-19 is killing African-Americans at a higher rate than the US population at large, according to preliminary numbers that officials say point to disparities in healthcare access.
• The United States deported 61 Haitian migrants on Tuesday despite fears of further spreading the disease.
• Canada will keep up efforts to persuade the United States not to block the export of medical supplies, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said, while the province of Alberta warned of an economic disaster.
• Honduras will spur planting of grains, vegetables and fruit on unoccupied land to ensure the food supply.
• Uruguay agreed to repatriate 112 Australians and New Zealanders from a cruise ship stranded near Montevideo since 27th March, with most of the 219 passengers infected.
• Ecuador is preparing an emergency burial ground in Guayaquil, the country’s largest city, to address a shortage of burial plots.
ASIA
• The Chinese city of Wuhan ended its two-month lockdown, even as a small northern city ordered restrictions on its residents amid concern about a second wave of infections.
• India’s financial hub Mumbai is set to extend lockdown measures until at least 30th April as authorities race to expand testing.
• Commuters packed into trains in the Japanese capital on Wednesday, the first day of a state of emergency, with some expressing confusion over how best to restrict their movements.
• Singapore announced new measures to accelerate local food production, including a plan to turn car park rooftops in public housing estates into urban farms.
• Hong Kong extended social-distancing restrictions, including the closure of some bars and pubs and a ban on public gatherings of more than four people, until 23rd April.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
• Most Middle Eastern countries are seeing worrying daily increases in cases but the region still has a chance to contain its spread, a senior WHO official said.
• Saudi Arabia’s health minister said the virus could eventually infect between 10,000 and 200,000 people in the country.
• Egypt will ban any public religious gatherings during the holy Muslim fasting month Ramadan starting in around two weeks.
• South Africa’s main health workers’ union planned to challenge the government in court over shortages of protective gear.
ECONOMIC FALLOUT
• World stocks turned negative on Wednesday as the death toll mounted and euro zone finance ministers failed to agree a rescue package to help economies recover from the outbreak.
• The European Central Bank told euro zone finance ministers the area could need fiscal measures worth up to €1.5 trillion this year.
• Japan is expected to slip into a deep recession this year with the economy set to contract for a third straight quarter, a Reuters poll showed.
• Britain’s markets watchdog set out temporary measures to help companies raise cash quickly to weather the pandemic.
• South Korea’s president announced an additional 36 trillion won ($US29.5 billion) worth of cheap loans for exporters.
• Hong Kong will offer a relief package worth more than $HK100 billion ($US12.90 billion).
• Japan will pledge to contribute to an IMF trust offering debt relief to low-income countries, a finance ministry official told Reuters.
• Iran’s President said the IMF would be guilty of “discriminatory behaviour” unless it releases $US5 billion in emergency funding.
• The Trump administration asked Congress for an additional $US250 billion in emergency economic aid for small US businesses.
– Compiled by MILLA NISSA, ADITYA SONI and UTTARESH V
