POLITICO: WHO boss rejects U.S. accusations that health body was ‘bought’ by China
“World Health Organization head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Thursday rejected accusations from the U.S. that the public health body has been ‘bought’ by the Chinese government, saying such claims were ‘untrue and unacceptable.’ ‘The focus of the entire organization is on saving lives,’ Tedros said, adding that the ‘WHO will not be distracted by these comments and we don’t want the international community to be distracted.’ U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made the accusations at a private event in London on Tuesday, claiming the allegations were based ‘on a firm intelligence foundation.’ Pompeo also alleged that Chinese influence over the WHO had led to more ‘dead Britons.’ Tedros said Pompeo’s claims were ‘without any foundation’ and added that ‘the politicization of the pandemic’ had become a major threat. ‘Covid politics should be quarantined,’ he said…” (Furlong, 7/23).

Additional coverage of Tedros’s and other WHO officials’ remarks is available from AP, CNBC, The Hill, and VOA News.