SINGAPORE, March 12 (Xinhua) -- The COVID-19 epidemic is a common enemy facing humankind as a whole, and the international community must join hands to cope with it in order to win a final victory, a Singaporean scholar has said.
Zheng Yongnian, director of the East Asian Institute at the National University of Singapore, told Xinhua in a recent interview that the nationwide and large-scale effort led by the Chinese government to combat the epidemic has made a remarkable achievement obvious to all.
The epidemic situation in China's Hubei Province, the epicenter of the outbreak, has been effectively controlled, and the number of confirmed cases in the entire country has been on a steady decline, he said, adding that the speedy containment of the epidemic is rarely seen in the history of both China and humankind.
The history of humankind is also one of humankind fighting viruses, Zheng noted, adding that China began mobilizing the whole country to push back the epidemic as soon as it realized the threat of the virus.
A team from the World Health Organization (WHO) gave an objective and fair evaluation of China's work after a field trip to the country, he said.
The Chinese government has taken strict measures to control the spread of the epidemic, and it is not easy, said the China expert, adding that Chinese people, especially the people of Hubei, have made great sacrifices.
Zheng cited WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus as saying that China deserves the international community's gratitude and respect for its anti-epidemic efforts.
Viruses respect no borders, and every new virus is a public enemy of all people in the world, the scholar said. Under the circumstances, the international community should join hands to cope with the virus in order to win a final victory, he said.
The scholar suggested a two-pronged war on the virus -- people should make efforts to combat the virus on one hand and revive the affected economy as soon as possible on the other.
Recognizing the novel coronavirus as humankind's common enemy will help people understand the efforts and contributions that Chinese people have made for the sake of the world, Zheng added.
The scholar called on countries to support and learn from each other in the fight against the epidemic, and stick strong together with Chinese people.
He also called on China to stand with the world to deal with the situation in order to win a final victory.
