WHO remains tight-lipped on experts sent to investigate coronavirus in China
- Two specialists were in the Chinese capital on the weekend to talk terms of a bigger mission into the origins of the pandemic
- Much will depend on how much access the investigators are given to data and a laboratory in Wuhan, observers say
The WHO said last week that two experts – an animal health specialist and an epidemiologist – would start work on Saturday but by Sunday evening there was still no word on the name of the specialists, the schedule of the trip, and their agenda.
Chinese authorities did not make a statement about the visitors on the weekend and the Chinese media did not report their arrival. And no Chinese institution, including the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, confirmed that it had or would confer with the WHO experts.
Associated Press reported that the two experts were in Beijing on Saturday and Sunday.
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Their mission is to work with Chinese health officials and scientists to prepare for a larger WHO-led international task force at an undisclosed date.