WHO "very impressed" with Chinese response to coronavirus outbreak

The World Health Organization (WHO) is "very impressed" with the Chinese response to the global coronavirus outbreak so far, a senior official said on Wednesday, adding that the world had reached a critical point in efforts to tackle the disease.

"They are taking extraordinary measures in the face of what is an extraordinary challenge," said Mike Ryan, Executive Director of WHO Health Emergencies Programme who accompanied the body's chief on a trip to China this week.

"We are at an important juncture in this event. We believe these chains of transmission can still be interrupted."