Coronavirus: Chinese Envoy says WHO praised country's efficiency in containing virus

The World Health Organisation (WHO) praised China's efficiency in detecting the Coronavirus outbreak, isolating the disease and supporting other countries in the situation, China's Ambassador to India, Sun Weidong, said on Friday.

"As the Director-General of WHO Dr Tedros said, the speed with which China detected the outbreak, isolated the virus, sequenced the genome and shared it with WHO and the world are very impressive, and beyond words. So is China's commitment to transparency and to supporting other countries," the envoy said told ANI.

The Ambassador said that while fighting the epidemic, the Chinese government cooperated with the world with a sense of responsibility.

READ | Chinese Envoy Cautions On 'excessive' Virus Measures

WHO has confidence in China's efforts

The Chinese envoy quoted the words of WHO Director-General Dr.Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, where he said that WHO has confidence in China's capacity to control the outbreak, and its efforts to combat the disease.

'Many of the prevention and containment measures taken by China so far, exceeds the relevant requirements for dealing with emergencies. In many ways, China is actually setting a new standard for outbreak response,' WHO said. 

Sun Weidong also stressed that the WHO disfavors imposing travel or trade restrictions on China.

READ | China Slams US For Travel Warning Over Virus: Statement

The World Health Organisation on Thursday announced a public health emergency of global concern over the coronavirus outbreak in China and other countries.

"The main reason for this declaration is not because of what is happening in China, but because of what is happening in other countries," Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, as quoted by CNN.

The UN health body also spoke highly of China's prevention and containment measures.

READ | Coronavirus: China Wants Countries To Avoid 'overreaction', Calls For Solidarity

Death Toll Soars To 213

The death toll from the Coronavirus outbreak has risen to 213 with 9,356 confirmed cases in China after the worst-hit Hubei province reported 42 new fatalities on Friday. Within the past 24 hours, over 1,200 new cases of the disease have been recorded in 17 Chinese cities, the Chinese media reported.

The new figures came shortly after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global emergency over the deadly epidemic, which has spread to over 20 countries around the world. The latest figures show that the daily death count is increasing sharply, despite unprecedented measures imposed by China on Hubei a week ago.

READ | Coronavirus Death Toll Soars To 213; Over 9,300 Confirmed Cases In China

(With inputs from ANI)

(Image credits: Twitter)