ugc_banner

Joe Biden, along with the world, awaits WHO probe report on origin of coronavirus

WION Web Team
New Delhi, Delhi, IndiaUpdated: Feb 08, 2021, 11:25 PM IST
main img
Photograph:(Reuters)

Story highlights

The Biden administration has declared it will not accept the investigation report on face value, and will evaluate the facts with allies.

A team of investigators led by the World Health Organisation (WHO) that visited Wuhan in the search for clues about the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to leave China on Wednesday (February 10).

But before that, it is expected to hold a press conference to silence its critics.

Even before the investigation began, this team has been at the receiving end of global criticism -- especially when the world found out how China has been dictating the terms for the probe.

And how the investigators were depending on data shared by Chinese authorities.

A week ago, new US President Joe Biden also expressed doubts over the probe. And US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Beijing hasn't been forthcoming.

The Biden administration has declared it will not accept the investigation report on face value, and will evaluate the facts with allies.

The WHO has taken strong offence to America's stand.

Michael Ryan, executive director of WHO health emergencies programme, said, "Many people externally are making references to the fact that they won't accept the report when it comes out or the report is already not a report they will accept or that there's other intelligence available that may show different findings."

"If you have the answers, if you think you have some answers, please let us know. We have had this here before, at this very press conference, people making allusions to intelligence that was available that had the answers - that was never provided."

That message was for the US -- a demand to share any contradictory proof -- even when the WHO team is itself not confident of finding any answers anytime soon.

Microbiologist and infectious disease expert Dominic Dwyer is also in Wuhan. He is a member of the WHO probe team.

Dwyer believes it could take years before the world gets any answers about the origins of the virus.

"So, you know, there's short term things, which is reviewing really what we know right now and bringing all that data together, and then there's going to be a series of sort of longer term projects, as I said this could take some years."

What can we say? Only time will tell.