WHO should take the lead on virus study in China

Published Mon, May 11, 2020 · 09:50 PM

CHINA'S apparent willingness to co-operate with the World Health Organization (WHO) in an open investigation into the origin of the Covid-19 virus, asserted repeatedly last week by its foreign ministry, is an encouraging sign that an issue on which the United States and China are at loggerheads may be resolved. Resolution may be reached perhaps as early as next week, during the annual meeting of the World Health Assembly, the WHO's decision-making body.

One condition - not unreasonable - set by the Chinese side is that the study cannot be based on "the presumption of guilt" on China's part.

The ministry spokesperson, Hua Chunying, asserted that "tracing the origin of the virus is a very complex issue that needs to be …