As the United States formalized its withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO), the blame game over COVID-19 has flared up again. After the U.S. government faulted China's initial response, China pushed back, saying, "Do not politicize the pandemic."
Guo Jiakun, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, said at a regular briefing on the 26th, in response to a question about the U.S. withdrawal from the WHO, "Since the outbreak of COVID-19, China has put the people and life first and has cooperated with countries to respond to the crisis," adding, "The timetable and context of China's disease control efforts are clear, and the relevant facts and data have received broad recognition from the international community."
Earlier, the U.S. Department of State and the Department of Health and Human Services announced the formal withdrawal from the WHO in a joint statement on the 23rd (local time), asserting that China concealed key information, including not providing the genetic sequence information of early infection cases to the WHO.
In response, Guo, the Spokesperson, said, "Such facts cannot be depicted in a smear-mongering manner," adding, "We firmly oppose politicizing the pandemic, exploiting it for political purposes, and shifting responsibility onto China." He added, "Such actions will not win public support and will ultimately end in failure."
Guo, the Spokesperson, also took issue with the U.S. withdrawal from the WHO itself and emphasized the need for international coordination. Guo said, "The WHO is an authoritative professional international organization in the field of global public health," adding, "We note that the WHO has expressed regret over the U.S. withdrawal." He went on to claim, "Multilateralism is the cornerstone of today's international order and a prevailing trend that reflects the shared will of the international community."
He also said, "China has consistently supported the WHO in faithfully fulfilling its role and responsibilities," adding, "Going forward, we will deepen international public health cooperation and strengthen global health governance to promote the building of a 'community of common health for mankind.'"