WHO headquarters in Geneva
WHO released a joint traceability study with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on Tuesday (March 30), which says it is possible that the CCP virus was transmitted to humans by bats through another animal. But the involvement of the Chinese Communist Party in the writing of the report makes its conclusions doubtful.
The study says that transmission of the CCP virus (SARS-CoV-2) may have begun weeks before the initial case was discovered, with some of the suspected positive samples being found even earlier than the first case in Wuhan.
In the report, the researchers also listed four scenarios for transmission of the CCP virus: direct transmission from animals to humans; transmission from animals to humans via intermediate hosts; transmission via cold-chain products; and leakage from laboratories.
Of the four scenarios, transmission from bats or other animals to humans via intermediate hosts is the most likely, and is assessed by experts as “very likely,” while the possibility of a laboratory leak is considered highly unlikely.
The closest thing to the CCP virus found today is a related virus found in bats, but “the evolutionary distance between these bat viruses and the CCP virus is estimated to be several decades, suggesting that there is a link in between,” according to the report. In addition, experts have found highly similar viruses in pangolins.
As for the claim of a laboratory leak, the experts said, “There is no record of a virus closely related to the new coronavirus in any laboratory until December 2019, nor is there a genome assembly that could provide the genome of the CCP virus, and given the above, it is considered highly unlikely that the pandemic originated in a laboratory.”
According to the New York Times, Jesse Bloom, an evolutionary biologist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, said the statement that a “laboratory leak is highly unlikely” is He was skeptical because he did not see any reason in the report to rule out the possibility of a lab leak.
In addition, former CDC director Robert Redfield also told CNN that he believes the CCP virus leaked from a laboratory in Wuhan, but that the leak was not necessarily intentional.
The WHO report recommends further research into hypotheses other than the lab leak hypothesis to help trace the origin of the virus and the closest common ancestor to the virus.
This study also mentions that the South China Seafood Market in Wuhan may not have been the original origin of the outbreak.
“Many early cases were associated with the South China market, but an equal number of cases were associated with other markets, and some cases were not associated with any market.” The report said, “The spread within the broader community in December could explain the cases unrelated to the South China market and, together with the presence of early cases unrelated to that market, could suggest that the South China market was not the original source of the outbreak.”
The report added: “No definitive conclusions can be drawn about the role of the Wuhan South China Seafood Market in the origin of the outbreak and how the outbreak was introduced to the market.”
At a press conference on Tuesday, WHO Director-General Tan Desai said that further research is still needed to trace the origin of the CCP virus and that people need to spare no effort to continue scientific research.
He said, “I welcome suggestions for further research to understand the earliest human cases and clusters, to trace animals sold in markets in and around Wuhan, and to better understand the range of potential animal hosts and intermediate hosts.”
The traceability report is based on a field trip to China in January and February of this year by the WHO International Expert Group on the Traceability of the CCP Virus and a joint scientific collaboration with Chinese scientists on the traceability of the CCP virus.
The New York Times also reported that the Chinese government has repeatedly tried to steer the investigation in its favor while granting a certain level of access and cooperation. The fact that some of the Chinese scientists involved in writing the report hold public positions also allowed the CCP to influence the report’s conclusions to a large extent.
The report also said that Chinese scientists provided all of the research data used in the report. It is unclear whether the team of experts selected by the WHO sought access to additional data or was allowed to collect more data.
U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken also expressed concern Sunday about China’s involvement in writing the report. In an interview with CNN, he said, “The WHO is going to publish a report soon. We have real concerns about the methodology and the process of this report. Beijing authorities, for example, apparently helped write the report.”
In response, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said Monday that the Communist Party of China “will never accept baseless accusations and reckless smears from the U.S. side on the Epidemic.” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying also responded to the outbreak Tuesday, saying, “All questions should be left to scientists and health and disease control experts to study and draw conclusions that can stand the test of facts, history and Time, and I hope that other countries will provide full and comprehensive cooperation and support to the work of WHO experts, as China has done. “
Also on Tuesday, the WHO and leaders of more than 20 countries called for an international treaty to prepare for and respond to future pandemics.
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