China defends COVID-19 data-sharing as WHO seeks more access

31/12/2024 19:22

China has shared the most COVID-19 data and research results in the international community, its foreign ministry said on Tuesday, after the World

Health Organization repeated its call for more information and access.



China is also the only country that organised experts to share traceability progress with the WHO on many occasions, Mao Ning, spokesperson at the foreign ministry, told a regular news conference.



In a statement on Monday, the WHO again asked China to share data and access to assist its efforts to understand the origins of COVID-19, the first cases of which were detected in central China five years ago.



According to the WHO, over 760 million COVID-19 cases and 6.9 million deaths have been recorded worldwide. In mid-2023, it declared an end to COVID-19 as a public health emergency but said the disease should be a permanent reminder of the potential for new viruses to emerge with devastating consequences.