WHO photo: VCG
Chinese experts from the joint WHO-China team of experts were not notified of the launch of the full report on the study of the origins of COVID-19 before the disclosure was announced by a WHO official, which was “quite surprising”, as such work should be done based on direct communication between Chinese and foreign experts, a Chinese team expert told the Global Times exclusively on Saturday.
During communications with foreign experts, the Chinese expert perceived a palpable “political pressure” on international experts and, therefore, the Chinese side was concerned that the final report might differ from the previous consensus, the expert said.
“I was very surprised by this announcement,” the Chinese expert from the joint team of experts WHO-China, who declined to be identified, told the Global Times.
Work on the report should be conducted based on direct communication between Chinese and foreign experts, but the Chinese experts have not received any relevant information, the expert said. Instead, a WHO official went public with the announcement of the report’s release.
Since WHO foreign experts arrived in China in January to study the origins of COVID-19, Chinese and international experts have established good work and personal relationships, with both sides cooperating seamlessly to achieve positive results and broad consensus, he said. the Chinese specialist.
Time constraints prevented them from completing the writing of a full report, but a consensus was reached on the main findings of the report summary, conclusions and suggestions for future work for joint study, all revealed at a joint press conference of the team in 9 of February .
The Chinese expert said the two sides agreed that experts from China and WHO would continue to write the full text of the report based on the previous consensus, but a full draft report in English was not sent to China until March 17. about 300 pages and has no Chinese version, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said on Friday.
Peter Ben Embarek (center) talks to Liang Wannian (left) and Marion Koopmans (right) after a press conference to end the visit by an international team of experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) to the city of Wuhan, in the center Hubei province in China. Photo: AFP
In communication with foreign experts, “we can feel that international experts are facing political pressure from some aspects,” said the expert. “So there seems to be a reason for the report to be delayed beyond scientific research.”
The Chinese side does not know “exactly who is putting pressure on international experts,” he said. “It may be from several countries. We are concerned that the final report may differ from the previous consensus.”
Such a divergence would be very disrespectful to the efforts of the joint team of experts, as well as to the spirit of the scientific effort, said the expert.
It would also undermine global research on tracking the origins of viruses, he said.
“Tracing the origins of the virus is a matter of science, which should not and cannot be interfered with by policy,” said the expert. “Chinese and foreign scientists are disgusted by politicized acts.”
Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said at a routine news conference on Friday that China immediately consulted the relevant parties when the WHO official announced that the report on tracking the origins of the virus would be released. next week.
“As far as I know, Chinese experts received an English version of the WHO expert report on March 17, totaling about 300 pages,” said Zhao. “At the moment, there is still no Chinese version available.”
WHO was reportedly working on the translation, Zhao said. “Whether the report will be released next week depends on discussions between Chinese and foreign experts,” he said.
Tracing the origins of the virus has never been a simple task and has required long-term joint efforts by scientists, Liang Wannian, leader of the WHO-China team of Chinese experts, told the Global Times earlier in an exclusive interview.
Leading Chinese scientist on the WHO joint team addresses key issues before the joint report is released Graph: Xu Zihe / GT
“At the beginning of this research, we established the ‘four together’ principles, which means that we plan together, do fieldwork together, write the report together and launch publications together,” said Liang.
Liang previously predicted a possible delay in the release of the report, citing the extensive content. “As scientists, we want to present a complete, rigorous and scientific report at the highest level, so this process takes some time,” he said.
Liang believes that some politicians and the media “have insisted on politicizing the scientific issue of tracing the sources of COVID-19, regardless of scientific facts, for personal gain, misinterpreting the scientific findings and reports of our joint team, which is a great disregard for the work of our scientists. ”