German minister laments choice of Syria for WHO board seat

Germany’s health minister says he is “anything but happy” that Syria’s government has been selected for a seat on the World Health Organization’s executive board

BERLIN -- Germany’s health minister says he is “anything but happy” that Syria’s government — which has waged a devastating, deadly decade-long war against dissenters — has been selected for a seat on the World Health Organization’s executive board. Health Minister Jens Spahn said Tuesday that the choice of Syria, which was confirmed with no debate or dissent at a meeting of WHO member nations in Geneva over the weekend, reflected the need to work with some governments for the benefit of their people — especially on health matters. “I’m anything but happy with this decision,” Spahn said when asked about the issue at a news conference in Berlin. But he added that international cooperation among sovereign states was necessary to coordinate and set standards together and noted that a similar situation also arises in other international forums like the U.N. Human Rights Council.