Covid 19 coronavirus: North Korea takes aim at nations who ignored coronavirus to blame WHO

While North Korea stopped short of naming the US, their delegate has taken aim at countries that ignored and blamed the World Health Organisation for the Covid-19 outbreak. Photo / Getty

North Korea's delegation at the World Health Assembly has taken aim at other countries that ignored and blamed the World Health Organisation for the Covid-19 outbreak.

In a statement, the hermit nation's delegates said a number of countries are trying to use the "catastrophe for their impure political purposes".

The North Koreans didn't mention any country by name but said it was an "expression of irresponsibility" to blame the WHO or one of the member states for the outbreak if a country ignored "the warnings of WHO with no proper action".

President Donald Trump and other US officials have been severely critical of the WHO's response to the coronavirus outbreak.

On Monday, Trump called WHO a "puppet of China" and blamed the powerhouse nation for "mass worldwide killings".

US Health Secretary Alex Azar spoke at the WHO's World Health Assembly and accused the organisation of letting Covid-19 spin "out of control" at the cost of "many lives".

Azar also claimed at least one member state "made mockery of their transparency obligations" in an attempt to conceal the outbreak, thereby creating "tremendous costs for the entire world."

While North Korea stopped short of naming the US, their delegate has taken aim at countries that ignored and blamed the World Health Organisation for the Covid-19 outbreak. Photo / Getty

President Trump is not alone in criticising the WHO's response. The organisation has been accused of being too trusting of China, and overly praising the country for its approach to the outbreak as it punished whistleblowers who tried to raise the alarm.

The WHO has agreed to hold an inquiry into the global response to the coronavirus pandemic.

North Korea supported the assembly's resolution to launch an evaluation of the virus post-pandemic, but added that discussions around fingerpointing and Taiwan's membership in the assembly were inappropriate.

North Korea claims to have not had a single case of Covid-19, a success the delegation attributed to Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un's "prominent leadership."

Experts are skeptical of North Korea's zero case claim. Jung Pak, a former CIA analyst and North Korea expert with the Brookings Institution, told USA Today it's a "near impossibility" that the country has no infections.

Bruce Klingner, an ex-CIA deputy division chief for Korea, said it was "hard to believe" there weren't any cases but noted that it's possible the outbreak was limited.