Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday lauded China’s efforts in combating the COVID-19 pandemic, showing support for the World Health Organization (WHO) amid ongoing criticism from the U.S. that the United Nations agency is “China-centric.”
Xi gave a televised address at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, commending the country’s coronavirus response and attributing it to the socialist system and traditional Chinese culture that stimulated motivation and collaboration to combat the outbreak effectively, The Associated Press reported.
The virus was first discovered late last year in the city of Wuhan, located in the Hubei province.
The U.S. and other countries have criticized the Chinese government for withholding vital information about the outbreak when it first emerged, alleging the pandemic could have been prevented had the information been more transparent to the global public.
“We are willing to do whatever it takes to protect people’s lives,” Xi told participants attending the event Tuesday, maintaining the notion that the country acted quickly and effectively to curb the spread of the outbreak across the mainland.
China has exported over 200,000 ventilators for COVID-19 treatment as well as 1.4 billion protective suits and 151.5 billion masks.
The country has reported 85,144 COVID-19 cases and 4,634 fatalities in a land of over 1.3 billion people.
In late December, the Chinese doctor who discovered COVID-19, Li Wenliang, was detained by authorities on accounts of spreading “rumors.”
He was later released, but his punishment for the early warnings sparked criticism about China’s initial handling of the outbreak. He later died after contracting the virus.
China has denied calls for an independent investigation into its handling of the emergency.
As the U.S. seeks to distance itself from the WHO, China has become a key defender of the agency against allegations that the WHO maintains any partial bias.
In July, President Trump announced the move to distance the U.S. from the global health agency, while still owing some financial dues back to the WHO.
Xi said China would maintain support to the WHO in playing a “leading role in the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“All selfishness, scapegoating and confusing right and wrong will not only hurt a country and its people, but harm people of all countries,” Xi said.