On August 18, the “International Expert Dialogue on the Origins of COVID-19” was held online by the China Forum under the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University and the Global Governance Institute, an independent think tank in China. Chinese and international public health scientists and epidemiologists discussed the challenges of investigating the origins of the virus and called for science in such investigative endeavors.

In response to the politicization of the investigations of the virus’s origins and the divergences on the way forward for such investigations, the panelists synthesized the lessons learned from the SARS-CoV-2 origin investigations, and proposed suggestions on how to conduct future investigations in accordance with the International Health Regulations, WHO Charter and resolutions as well as international rule of law and norms. In addition, the panel engaged in constructive discussions on key issues such as how to avoid politicizing COVID-19 origin investigations and to promote the effectiveness of international cooperation in those investigative efforts.

List of Participants:

Chung-I Wu, Professor of Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago

SHI Weifeng, Professor, School of Public Health, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences

Peter Forster, Director of Research, Institute of Forensic Genetics, Muenster, Germany

Jonathan Stoye, Senior Group Leader, Retrovirus-Host Interactions Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute

Eric Feigl-Ding, Epidemiologist and Lecturer, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School

Luis Enjuanes, International Member, National Academy of Sciences, USA

WU Zhiwei, Professor, Center for Public Health Research, Nanjing University

The event was co-chaired by Andy Tian, President at the Global Governance Institute, and LIU Xin, Senior Host at CGTN. ZHANG Lirong, Secretary General of the China Forum, and HAN Hua, Member of the Executive Committee of the China Forum, also attended the dialogue.