Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (C) speaks at a press conference after a closed-door meeting of the Emergency Committee at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, on Jan. 23, 2020. (Xinhua/Liu Qu)
The World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday that he was struck by the determination of Chinese leadership and its people to end the new coronavirus outbreak.
In a series of tweets on Wednesday, Tedros said the Chinese are suffering the most, their lives and economy are bearing the brunt of the outbreak as they make sacrifices to contain it.
Aerial photo taken on Jan. 26, 2020 shows the construction site of Leishenshan Hospital in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province. Leishenshan Hospital is a makeshift hospital being built in Wuhan, the center of a coronavirus outbreak in central China. With a capacity of 1,300 to 1,500 beds, Leishenshan hospital will be put into use on Feb. 5. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)
"I welcome the invitation by China for WHO to assemble and lead an international team of experts to assess the new coronavirus outbreak and support Chinese counterparts. I appreciate such openness and urge this to continue from China and all other countries," he noted.
Just returned from China, Tedros commended its "monumental national response to the coronavirus outbreak," saying that based on cooperation and solidarity, China has committed to protecting its citizens and all people globally from the outbreak.
"I am concerned about the impact the new coronavirus outbreak is having on the health system. It is flu season, many people are worried and many are sick. We are impressed with the health workers' dedication. It is highly important that they are able to safely perform their work," said the WHO chief.
Medical workers diagnosed with the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) pneumonia are cured and discharged from a hospital in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 28, 2020. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)
Earlier Tedros announced that he has decided to have an Emergency Committee meeting Thursday on the new coronavirus (2019-nCoV).
According to the chief, most of the coronavirus cases are in China, just one percent have been recorded to date in 15 other countries and regions. "But some person-to-person transmission in 3 countries outside of China has been recorded. This potential for further global spread is why I called the EC (Emergency Committee)," he explained.
Tedros said the WHO is monitoring the new coronavirus outbreak every moment of every day, and "we will have more news following tomorrow's Emergency Committee meeting."
"The new coronavirus outbreak has spurred many countries, experts, companies and communities to take action. The world is pulling together to end the outbreak, building on lessons learned from past outbreaks," he noted.
"WHO is working 24/7 with networks of scientists, clinicians, disease trackers, governments & others to coordinate the new coronavirus response: R&D, proper public health measures, sharing data & ensuring supplies are available," he added.
