Once Blocked, The WHO COVID-19 Origin Investigation Team Will Arrive In China On Thursday

JAKARTA - After several days of delay and blockage, the World Health Organization (WHO) investigative team that will investigate the origin of COVID-19 will land in China on Thursday. This was announced by Beijing today.

China's National Health Commission in a statement quoted by SCMP explained that the WHO team will work closely with Chinese scientists during the trip. However, the Chinese side has not provided further details regarding this matter.

The confirmation of the arrival of the WHO team came after the feeling of giddiness enveloped WHO. They began to question whether their members were really allowed to land in China or not.

Last week, WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he was very disappointed that China had not finalized the permits for his team. Two members have started their journey and the others were unable to travel at the last minute.

Before the slanted rumors against China broke out, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying hastily straightened up. "There could be some misunderstandings," Chunying said, explaining that it would work with WHO to deal with the pandemic.

On Saturday, Zeng Yixin, deputy director of the National Health Commission, said China is enthusiastically supporting WHO's expert and research group. For this reason, last Friday the WHO said it would start sending its team to carry out the mission. It's just that China suddenly blocked them and argued that they had not yet determined the right time.

Last week's delay raised another question mark over a mission that had been in progress for months. China also faces criticism for a lack of transparency as well as concerns that investigations are too late.

Investigations that want to find the origin of the virus that causes COVID-19 have become part of the resolution passed at the WHO meeting in May last year. But the political aromas surrounding the origins of the virus have complicated the mission.

The United States (US) under President Donald Trump's administration has tried to blame China for the outbreak. Meanwhile Beijing denies and intensifies a narrative that questions this hypothesis.

China has marked the WHO's mission to China as part of China's efforts to identify the origins of COVID-19. Meanwhile the WHO says the mission will be able to get scientists out of China.