Did WHO's China ties slow decision to declare emergency?

Beijing has contributed money and leadership to the UN agency

20200201N skipping to Xi

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping before a meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Jan. 28. © Reuters

RINTARO HOSOKAWA and TSUKASA HADANO, Nikkei staff writers

GENEVA/BEIJING -- A day after the World Health Organization declared the new coronavirus a global health emergency, some are questioning whether the Chinese government's ties to the United Nations agency may have contributed to the time it took to make the decision.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus heaped praise on China in Thursday's news conference in Geneva announcing the emergency.

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