China in hot seat?
EU backs independent probe into origins of coronavirus
The European Union will put forward a proposal to the World Health Assembly calling for an independent probe into the origins of the coronavirus.
The EU is a co-sponsor of the plan that will be put forward at the assembly’s May 18 meeting, European Commission spokeswoman Virginie Battu-Henriksson said by email Tuesday.
The bloc is consulting with World Health Organization members and regional groups on the wording of the proposal, she added.
“The draft resolution envisages calling for an independent review on lessons learned from the international health response to the coronavirus, to strengthen future global health security preparedness,” Battu-Henriksson said.
The meeting of the WHO’s decision-making body later this month is shaping up as a test of China’s diplomatic standing in the wake of the pandemic.
In addition to calls for an independent probe, such nations as the United States are also pushing to reinstate Taiwan — which Beijing views as a province — as an observer to the assembly.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters in Canberra he has written to all Group of 20 leaders this week in his bid to create support for the investigation into how the virus started and spread.
Australia’s previous calls for the probe have raised the ire of China, its largest trading partner.
In the U.S., President Donald Trump has accused Beijing of deliberately mishandling an outbreak that has killed more than 4,600 Chinese citizens to damage him politically and promised a “conclusive” report on the virus’ origins.
“What’s really important is that we have a proper review, an independent review, which looks into the sources of these things in a transparent way,” Morrison said Tuesday.
The inquiry would help the world deal with the emergence of the next virus that has “pandemic potential,” he said, adding that his nation’s health experts believed it originated in a wildlife wet market in the Chinese city of Wuhan.