Editor’s Note: Every Wednesday, WPR Newsletter and Engagement Editor Benjamin Wilhelm curates the week’s top news and expert analysis on China.
In a speech Monday to the World Health Assembly, the governing body of the World Health Organization, Chinese leader Xi Jinping called for international cooperation in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and in particular for greater support for the developing world. Xi’s remarks were a bold assertion of Chinese leadership at the WHO and in global efforts to contain the coronavirus, carefully designed to deflect international criticism of Beijing’s handling of the initial outbreak.
At the annual meeting of the World Health Assembly, which was held remotely, Xi pledged $2 billion in aid over two years “to help with COVID-19 response and with economic and social development in affected countries, especially developing countries.” In his speech, he repeatedly referenced China’s support for multilateral institutions, urged protection for international supply chains and promised that if China develops a vaccine, it “will be made a global public good.” And in a reversal of Beijing’s previous position, Xi agreed to an independent review of the global coronavirus response “after it is brought under control.” Such an investigation, he added, must be “objective and impartial.”