‘We can try to do better’: Under-fire China responds to criticism of its Covid-19 response Updated Jan 19, 2021 | 21:07 IST
The Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response of the WHO slammed China for early shortcomings in the initial response to the coronavirus pandemic. Representational Image. | Photo Credit: ANI
Beijing: After an independent panel slammed China for acting too slowly on the COVID-19 outbreak, an under-fire China responded to the criticism by saying that it agrees there is always room for improvement, while denying that the country was poorly handling the pandemic.
CNN quoted Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying as saying: About this I want to say that we should certainly try to do better. I think any country, including China, the US, the UK, Japan, and any other country, should try to do better, because I think there is always no best, only better, when it comes to public health issues.
The independent panel also notes that WHO and China acted slowly to the Covid-19 outbreak. It questions the global health body for not declaring the pandemic earlier.
China defended its handling of the coronavirus pandemic Tuesday but said it would "strive to do better" after independent experts criticised the speed of its response to a virus that has now killed more than two million people worldwide.