Published 13:47 IST, July 22nd 2020
Mike Pompeo slams WHO for siding with China during a private meeting in UK
Mike Pompeo slammed the WHO during a private meeting in the UK accusing the health body chief Tedros Adhanom of making deal with Beijing, according to reports.
The United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on July 21 slammed the World Health Organisation (WHO) during a private meeting in the United Kingdom, according to reports. Mike Pompeo reportedly attacked WHO and its chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for siding with China during the pandemic. Media reports suggest that Pompeo told those present at the meeting that WHO has become a political organisation and is no longer a science-based health body. Pompeo was reportedly addressing a group of MPs and peers where he attacked the United Nations' arm for being 'biased'.
According to reports, Pompeo told the audience that China and the current WHO chief made a deal in 2017 under which the Communist state promised Tedros to help win the election and that he is making the claim based on the intelligence provided to him without providing further information. The recent attacks on WHO came after one of the two Labour MPs present at the meeting asked Pompeo whether Trump's decision to quit the global health body at a time of a crisis was right. This is not the first time when Trump's top ministers have made such claims as they have been making such statements publicly for the past several months.
WHO rejects claims
Meanwhile, a WHO spokesperson while taking a question on Pompeo's recent remark said that the health organisation is not aware of any such statement but added that the body rejects any speculative allegations and also urged countries to focus on handling the ongoing crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The United States is the worst affected country by the disease with over 3.9 million infections and at least 1,42,000 deaths, according to figures by Johns Hopkins University.
Updated 13:47 IST, July 22nd 2020