Abe told a news conference he had told fellow Group of Seven leaders on Thursday that “the international community, centring on the WHO, must cooperate to fight this infectious disease, which is having a global impact” and Japan would “firmly” support it. “There’s only the WHO that can serve as an international institution” to address the pandemic, he said. Trump said this week he would halt US funding to the Geneva-based WHO over its handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Abe did not criticise Trump, with whom he has a warm relationship but the Japanese leader backed G7 calls to consider reforms to the WHO. “There are various views on the WHO, such as it may not be politically neutral,” Abe said, but he rejected the idea of Japan reducing its funding.

Source: bd News24 April 17, 2020 13:41 UTC