Expert Probe Won't Play 'blame Game' In China

The World Health Organisation insisted on Monday that the international investigation into the Covid-19 pandemic's origins, set to start this week in China, was not looking for "somebody to blame".

WHO emergencies director Michael Ryan said the delayed mission – finally given the green light by Beijing – was about science, not politics.

Ten international experts will visit China from Thursday to probe the origins of the new coronavirus, more than a year after the pandemic began and amid accusations that Beijing has tried to thwart the investigation.

"Understanding the origins of disease is not about finding somebody to blame," Ryan told a press conference in Geneva. "It is about finding the scientific answers about the very important interface between the animal kingdom and the human kingdom.

"It is an absolute requirement that we understand that interface. We are looking for the answers here, not culprits and not people to blame."

Experts say solving the mystery of how the virus first jumped from animals to humans is crucial to preventing another pandemic. The mission will visit Wuhan, where the first cluster of cases was detected in December 2019.

The WHO had expected the investigation to start last week but, to the UN health agency's surprise and disappointment with two members already on their way, Beijing suddenly announced a last-minute hold-up over entry permission.

Following the disruptions and intense scrutiny, WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus pleaded on Monday for the mission to be given the space to do its work.

"We are pleased that an international team of scientists – distinguished experts from 10 institutions and countries – are commencing their travel to China to engage in and review scientific research with their Chinese counterparts on the origins of the Covid-19 virus," he said.

The novel coronavirus has killed nearly two million people since the outbreak first emerged in Wuhan.

"That milestone is a grim and shocking one as we do approach it," Ryan said. (AFP)