WORLD LEADERS CALL FOR INTERNATIONAL PANDEMIC TREATY
In order to prepare for the future pandemics, 23 world leaders have called for a new global treaty. The EU and WHO backed the push for a new global settlement to better prepare the world to tackle future pandemics.
Signed off by leaders from five continents, including Germany’s Angela Merkel, Britain’s Boris Johnson, France’s Emmanuel Macron, South Korea’s Moon Jae-in and South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, the call came in an op-ed published internationally.
The op-ed said, “We believe that nations should work together towards a new international treaty for pandemic preparedness and response.”
Adding, “Such a renewed collective commitment would be a milestone in stepping up pandemic preparedness at the highest political level.”
This comes after the world struggles to combine forces to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic which has killed 2.8 million people worldwide.
The treaty, as proposed by the EU Chief Charles Michel at the United Nations last year, would likely be the focus of major international wrangling.
“At a time when COVID-19 has exploited our weaknesses and divisions, we must seize this opportunity and come together as a global community for peaceful cooperation that extends beyond this crisis,” said the leaders.
WHO head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and EU Chief are to hold a press conference on Tuesday on the proposal.
