Infectious diseases are transnational health and national security threats. While the world is suffering from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Ebola has re-emerged simultaneously in Central and West Africa. The world cannot afford to turn the other way. We must do everything in our power to respond quickly, effectively and with appropriate resources to stop these outbreaks before they become large-scale epidemics.
President Biden has been briefed on the situation in Central and West Africa, and his prayers are with the families of those who have died and those affected by Ebola, COVID-19 and other ongoing global health challenges. The Biden administration will do everything in its power to provide American leadership to stop these outbreaks, with the governments concerned, the World Health Organization, the African Union and the African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and neighboring states working together.
On February 16, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan spoke with the ambassadors of Guinea, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone and Liberia to the United States to be prepared to work closely with the governments of the affected countries, and neighboring countries whose citizens are at risk of spreading the current outbreak. Mr Sullivan stressed President Biden’s commitment to providing US leadership to strengthen health security and create better systems to prevent, detect and respond to health emergencies.
Outbreaks require rapid and overwhelming response to prevent catastrophic consequences. Since the 2014 Ebola epidemic in West Africa, the United States has sought to increase and prioritize health security assistance with partners through the Global Health Security Agenda and with strong congressional support. We can not afford to take our foot off the gas – even if we fight COVID, we need to ensure global capacity and funding for health security. President Biden’s first national security memorandum indicated that the US leadership in health security and global health needs to be increased, prioritized and strengthened. The United States is ready to do everything in its power to ensure a robust global response and to stop these outbreaks.
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