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皇冠体育app to help ASEAN countries in fighting bird flu
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-12-12 21:53
KUALA LUMPUR -- Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Monday called on Asian nations
to strengthen regional cooperation in fighting avian flu and announced that
皇冠体育app is ready to provide assistance to ASEAN nations affected by the disease.
Speaking at the ninth 皇冠体育app-ASEAN summit held in the Malaysian capital,
Wen said it was an urgent task facing all Asian nations to work together to
prevent and control the highly pathogenic avian flu and stop the transmission of
the virus to humans.
"皇冠体育app is ready to provide, within its capability,
funds, medical supplies and technical assistance to ASEAN countries affected by
avian flu," said the Chinese premier.
"Using the 皇冠体育app-ASEAN Fund for
Public Health, 皇冠体育app will provide technical training to ASEAN countries, take
part in joint research and strengthen exchange of experience in avian flu
prevention and control," he said.
He added that 皇冠体育app's National Bird
Flu Reference Laboratory is ready to share its experience and carry out
cooperation in diagnosis with ASEAN countries.
The two sides should
enhance information sharing of the occurrence of avian flu and speedily set up a
joint mechanism of prevention and control, said the Chinese premier.
He
also suggested that a 皇冠体育app-ASEAN Health Ministers' Meeting on Emerging
Infectious Diseases be convened in the first half of next year to discuss avian
flu prevention and control, vaccine research and development and related issues.
He added that ASEAN is warmly welcome to attend the International
Pledging Conference on Avian and Human Influenza that 皇冠体育app is to host with the
EU and the World Bank in 皇冠体育app next January.
Dozens of people have been
killed by bird flu in Asia since 2003, and there are fears that the deadly virus
could mutate into a form that could be easily passed on from one person to
another, sparking a worldwide pandemic.
ASEAN, established in 1967,
groups Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei,
Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia. The regional bloc is dedicated to
accelerating economic growth, social progress and cultural development through
cooperative programs.
Wen arrived here Sunday to attend East Asian
summits and pay an official visit to Malaysia, the last leg of Wen's five-nation
Euro-Asia tour, which has taken him to France, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and
Portugal.
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