American billionaire Bill Gates said that after a year or two, things will not return to normal because of the fear of infection with the 'Covid-19' virus, unless a vaccine against this epidemic is produced or treatments are proven effective, noting that the time is now for cooperation and not for a hasty condemnation of China.
In an interview with the French newspaper Le Figaro, the man, who is the founder of Microsoft, and currently dedicated to philanthropy, responded to questions from Laure Mandeville, explaining that he expected the epidemic and described in detail in the New England Review medical journal the measures that should have been taken to prepare for him, by raising the ability to rapid test Engaging with the industry so that it is able to quickly produce treatment then vaccines.
But what was done in the United States of America was little, as only two institutions and some states donated small amounts to the Center for Epidemiology, which invested in some research related to vaccines, which is promising, not only to overcome this epidemic, but to treat other diseases.
Gates said there is a lot of work to be done, 'because today we are suffering a defeat that affects the entire world, with a lot of suffering and economic damage', and he made clear that he is in contact with most corporate CEOs to provide their manufacturing capabilities, to produce seven to 14 billion A dose of vaccines.
Treatment or vaccine
Gates warned that it is absolutely necessary to work on treatments, because they can be implemented much more easily than vaccines, and because they do not need to be tested on a large scale, noting that 'Britain is working on the treatments that we have identified as particularly promising.'
And if some of the treatments at the top of the list lead to failure - as Gates says - there are always some treatments that bode well, but for the world to return to normal, we will either need very effective treatments or a vaccine, otherwise 'we will live with Covid-19 for a long time.' One or two years. '
Although the system of testing and tracking may enable - according to Gates - to quickly identify and control areas of infection, but it will not return people to their normal activity, because their concern about the idea of injury will cause them to change their behavior, even government decisions will not return them to the stadiums unless it is proven that Treatments or vaccinations have put them at risk of death.
When responding to a question about the global effort launched at the initiative of the World Health Organization and in which the United States did not participate, Gates said that even if the United States did not participate in this stage in the global effort that started last Saturday, it will participate because of the importance of American medical research and its role The historical search for vaccines and AIDS.
He added that we must 'end this disease globally, not only because we care about other people but because we want the global economy to recover, and because we do not want imports to be the reason for re-infection with this epidemic.'
When asked about the freezing of the US financial contribution to the World Health Organization, and the organization's clear satisfaction with China, Gates said that there is no stronger link between an organization and a country than those between the United States and the World Health Organization, referring to staff ratios and WHO cooperation with the American Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
Gates expressed his lack of understanding of the US suspension of funding for the organization in the midst of a severe pandemic, and indicated that the day will come when all responses will be evaluated, explaining, 'I am sure the organization could have managed things differently, but the idea that it is changing the reality for the benefit of a country What is not correct. '
To respond to the fact that China may have hidden the truth about the epidemic, Gates said that the situation of any country from which a pandemic begins to spread will be difficult in any case, noting that China has used very critical methods to stop the virus and is no longer a source of the spread of infection, as it has made all data available .
He explained that the time for evaluation will come of course, but 'directing the finger to the perpetrators today is not a constructive approach, because our economy is in a state of stagnation and the world is suffering, and the priority should be to cooperation.'
You are accused of inventing the virus
The newspaper faced Gates that he was stirring hate despite the generosity of his charitable projects, because he was accused by the promoters of the conspiracy of inventing the virus to sell his vaccines, so the response was that he himself had anticipated this type of epidemic, surprised by the extent of the damage that this virus caused on an incredible scale.
As for the promoters of the plot - Gates says - 'To say that I can do such a thing is really stupid, because our organization donates money to save lives (...) And we and our partners have reduced the number of deaths from infectious diseases from ten million deaths annually in general. 2000 to five million. '
On the other hand - Gates continues - 'If we see a company that has technology that can save many lives in developing countries, we support its work through investment, and if these investments make a profit, then we reinvest it 100% in the institution, which gives us funding to eliminate Malaria and polio. '
Gates concluded this point that he is working against malnutrition as one of the reasons why children in developing countries are vulnerable to death, and therefore he helps provide farmers with seeds that can withstand drought and other natural disasters.
China is a more reliable supplier
When asked about his concern about the nature of inclusiveness in the Chinese system which has made progress in medical research and artificial intelligence because of its ability to collect data, Gates said that if China can help in the treatment of cancer, this will be seen as a good thing, regardless of the nature of its government, noting To be a major contributor to medical science, although not at the level of the United States.
He pointed out that people in the face of the disease are all in the same boat, and that no one in the final stage of cancer will ask about the drugs he is taking. Does it come from a country that does not like his political system or from another?
Gates said that China is the most reliable supplier of medical components today compared to western countries that did not respond quickly to the crisis, noting that the use of this crisis to promote the views of xenophobia is not justified.
Gates concluded that all his attention is now focused on how to fight 'Covid-19', because it interferes with many things and causes so much economic damage and turmoil that we cannot imagine its limits.
