WHO chief warns against 'politicizing' pandemic
June 22, 2020
World leaders must not politicize the coronavirus pandemic, but unite to fight it, World Health Organization head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
He added that the pandemic was still accelerating and producing record daily increases in infections across the globe. It took over three months for the world to see 1 million virus infections, at the last 1 million cases have come in just eight days, Tedros said during a videoconference for the Dubai-based World Government Summit.
His comments come as the number of reported infections have spiked in Brazil, Iraq, India, and several US states.
"The greatest threat we face now is not the virus itself, it's the lack of global solidarity and global leadership," said Tedros, who has faced heavy criticism from US President Donald Trump. "We cannot defeat this pandemic with a divided world."
Tedros never directly mentioned Trump's name, or the fact that Trump has threatened to pull the US' support for the health agency.
Not ready to respond
Trump has repeatedly criticized the WHO for its early response to the outbreak, and has accused the agency of participating in a cover-up of information about the virus.
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"The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that, indeed, the world was not prepared. '' Tedros said.
Nearly 9 million people have been infected by the virus, and almost 469,000 have died worldwide.
Tedros pointed out that the pandemic was still accelerating, with cases in the world still rising — particularly in Latin America — and that its effects would be far-reaching.
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"We know that the pandemic is much more than a health crisis, it is an economic crisis, a social crisis and, in many countries, a political crisis.
"Its effects will be felt for decades to come."
lc/rc (AP)