At a regular China Foreign Ministry press conference on January 29, an AFP reporter asked: For its part, WHO said the WHO international expert team plans to visit hospitals, laboratories and markets, including the Wuhan Institute of Virus Research, the South China Seafood Market and the Wuhan CDC laboratory, and that they should get the support, access and data they need.
WHO Director-General Tan Desai also tweeted that he and the head of the Chinese health department had a frank discussion about ensuring that experts have access to relevant data.
Can the Chinese side provide more details on the expert group’s plans for field visits? Can you ensure that the expert group will have access to the scientific data and case information it needs?
Zhao Lijian: Regarding the arrangement of the next activities of the WHO international expert group, the places to visit and the parties to communicate with are a matter of scientific seriousness and research rigor.
The two sides will make arrangements scientifically and professionally based on the consensus reached earlier, taking into account the characteristics of the virus and the situation of the pandemic.
As far as I know, the expert group will go to all the relevant locations you mentioned earlier. As the exchange and cooperation progresses, I believe experts from both sides will release the progress of cooperation and research results to the public at an appropriate time.
I would like to emphasize that this is an exchange and cooperation between WHO international experts and Chinese experts in relevant fields on the traceability of the new coronavirus, as part of a global study, not an investigation.
During the isolation of WHO experts, the two sides have communicated several times by video and shared their research results, laying a good foundation for the next stage to deepen their cooperation and help global research.
Whether we are officials from various countries or journalists, we are not scientists, nor are we professionals.
We should leave the extremely professional work of traceability research to the experts, provide them with sufficient time and necessary space to promote relevant cooperation, give them full trust and support, and minimize unnecessary attention and interference.
China will, as always, uphold an open, transparent and responsible attitude, continue to maintain cooperation with WHO and make its contribution to better prevent future risks and protect the life safety and health of people in all countries.
