António Guterres says that, in the most optimistic scenario, the world will return “to normal in two or three years” – Observer

The Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, says that in a more optimistic scenario, in which developed countries manage to coordinate their responses to the Covid-19 pandemic, the world will not return to normal until two or three years from now.

In a joint interview with three European newspapers (The country, The world e The Tribune de Genève), Guterres also defends the work of the World Health Organization (WHO) and does not believe that the organization has “tried to help China hide the reality”. He admitted that “At some point” will need to be investigated how the world, including WHO, responded to the pandemic, Guterres stresses that everyone acted “in good faith”.

“At some point we will have to investigate the origin of the pandemic, how it can spread so quickly and how WHO, countries and other entities responded. Of course, this analysis will have to be done. But what I can say is that I know the people of WHO and are not controlled by any country. They have always acted in good faith to obtain the best possible cooperation between Member States, ”said Guterres.

“Mistakes may have been made, but I don’t think the WHO has tried to help China hide the reality. I think the organization wanted to have a good relationship with China at the beginning of the pandemic. They wanted to make sure that China cooperated, ”added the UN secretary general.

António Guterres underlined the relevance of a coordinated response among all countries in the world for the fight against the coronavirus to be successful. Asked about the post-pandemic world, Guterres says it is “too soon”Forecasts, but warns of different scenarios.

“There is an optimistic scenario, in which developed countries coordinate their responses and manage to contain the virus to avoid a second wave of contagions.. Developing countries would at least save themselves from catastrophe. Things would return to normal in two or three years, ”says Guterres.

“But there is also a pessimistic scenario, caused by the lack of a coordinated response, which would be a disaster for the southern hemisphere and would generate an important second wave in the north, with dire economic consequences and a global depression of five to seven years“Added the UN secretary general.

In the interview, António Guterres also defends the importance of international organizations such as the UN itself – “we need global leadership, because otherwise we cannot respond effectively to challenges such as those of a pandemic” – but also as the European Union , who considers, “must avoid consolidating a G2, that is, a global order with only two superpowers, USA and China“.

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