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Beijing has strongly opposed calls for an international investigation into the origins of the coronavirus, but said it has been open to a WHO-led investigation.
China’s Foreign Ministry did not comment directly on the WHO visit during a daily press conference on Thursday.
“China is willing to enhance its cooperation with WHO to advance global tracking efforts and contribute our part in our early victory against the pandemic,” said spokesman Wang Wenbin.
Many questions remain about the origins of COVID-19 and the role that Wuhan’s exotic wildlife trade may have played in it.
Although authorities closed the Huanan market in January, there is a growing scientific consensus that the virus did not originate there. Some studies suggest that it was already in circulation when it hit the market, with more than one transmission route.
China still strictly restricts access to places like the Huanan market, which remains empty and closed even though normal life has largely resumed in Wuhan and throughout China.
Beijing has also been pushing a narrative that the virus existed abroad before it was found in Wuhan and, unlike other countries, cites frozen food packaging as a risk of spreading COVID-19.
“There is a strong possibility that it was brought in via wholesale seafood from elsewhere. Wuhan has no seafood,” said Jiang Yongcheng, a 20-year-old student from Wuhan.
Others said a WHO visit is an opportunity to show how well the city has done in fighting the virus. Wuhan has not reported a locally transmitted case since May 10, after a 76-day lockdown that was one of the strictest in the world.
“We are not afraid of their investigation,” said Liu Qin, who works in real estate. “As you can see from the epidemic this year, things were done well in Wuhan, otherwise the epidemic would not have been controlled quickly.”
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