BEIJING -- COVID-19 origin-tracing work should not only focus on a particular location or certain time; Rather, there should be a global perspective with priorities and plans, an expert said on March 26 at a press briefing for foreign diplomats on the WHO-China joint study.

Identifying the origins of the novel coronavirus is a complicated scientific endeavor that requires long-term and sustained efforts, orderly and efficient work, and global cooperation, said Feng Zijian, deputy director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Chinese government had already asked relevant experts to carry out COVID-19 origin tracing last January, according to Feng.

Given that COVID-19 is a newly emerged virus, it is important to find out where it came from and the route of its introduction to the human population, he said.