Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director general of the World Health Organization (WHO), speaks during a press conference on the outbreak of the coronavirus COVID-19 in Geneva, Switzerland, Monday, March 2, 2020.
Stefan Wermuth | Bloomberg via Getty Images
Senior officials at the World Health Organization on Thursday criticized “unacceptable” comments by United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who alleged that China had co-opted the WHO.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the claims made in London by Pompeo on Tuesday that China had “co-opted international institutions such as the World Health Organization” were false and a distraction to the global response to the pandemic .
“The comments are false and unacceptable and have no basis for the matter,” Tedros said at a news conference from the United Nations agency’s Gevena headquarters on Thursday. “The WHO will not be distracted by these comments and we do not want the international community to be distracted as well.”
Pompeo has previously accused China of working with the WHO to minimize the growing coronavirus crisis. On Tuesday, he said that the entire world “needs to work together to ensure that every country, including China, behaves in the international system appropriately and consistently with the international order.”
Standing next to his UK counterpart Dominic Raab, Pompeo continued: “You cannot make claims for maritime regions that you have no legal claim to. You cannot threaten countries and intimidate them in the Himalayas. You cannot engage in coverage -up and co-opt international institutions such as the World Health Organization, “he added.
It is not the first time that Pompeo says China has “co-opted” the WHO.
“When you have an incident in your country that could lead to a pandemic, you have an obligation to report it and allow others to come in and help you be transparent about it. The Chinese Communist Party chose differently. The World Health Organization for achieve that cover-up, “Pompeo said during a virtual event with The Hill on July 15.”
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