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The World Health Organisation has called on the United States to share any intelligence it may have regarding the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic, even after Washington’s formal withdrawal from the UN health agency.
Covid-19 killed an estimated 20 million people worldwide, according to the WHO. The pandemic strained health systems, disrupted economies, and reshaped daily life across the globe.
The first known cases were identified in Wuhan, China, in late 2019. Determining how the SARS-CoV-2 virus emerged remains a central question for global health authorities seeking to prevent future pandemics.
US President Donald Trump submitted a one-year notice of withdrawal from the WHO on his first day back in office in January 2025. “Mishandling of the Covid-19 pandemic,” the Trump administration said, was mentioned in the notice.
The United States had previously initiated withdrawal proceedings in 2020, though that effort was later reversed.
The Trump administration has publicly endorsed the theory that the virus leaked from a virology laboratory in Wuhan. However, according to the WHO, the United States did not provide any intelligence on the virus’s origins before completing its withdrawal.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday during a press conference that some countries, particularly the United States, have stated publicly that they possess intelligence related to the origins of Covid-19.
Ghebreyesus said the WHO had written several months ago to senior US officials to “share any intelligence information that they have.”
“We haven’t received any information,” Ghebreyesus said.
He added that the organisation has not yet reached a definitive conclusion about the origins of the virus and that additional evidence is needed.
“We hope they will share, because we haven’t still concluded the Covid origins,” and “knowing what happened could help us to prevent the next” pandemic.
The WHO’s investigations into the origins of Covid-19 have so far been inconclusive, with all major hypotheses, including zoonotic spillover and a potential laboratory incident, still under consideration.
To help the WHO reach a decision, Ghebreyesus asked any government with information on the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic to share it.
Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s epidemic and pandemic threat management chief, said the organisation continues to seek information from governments that have indicated they hold relevant intelligence.
“We continue to follow up with all governments that have said that they have intelligence reports, the US included,” Kerkhove said.
“We don’t have those reports to date,” she added, other than those in the public domain.
