As the Trump White House has sought to politicize the virus outbreaks, vital time has been lost and collateral damage is likely to haunt the administration.

Cooperation is required if supply chain security is to be assured in the face of a worldwide health threat. No country can afford to be an outsider. Attempts by some to go it alone pose a huge challenge to the spirit needed to resolve the problem.

While the timing of the coronavirus outbreak is awkward, given the China-bashing realities of an election year in the United States, bilateral and global cooperation remain the only answer.

Cooperation is needed now more than ever. Political stereotypes should be abandoned, joint research should be fostered and critical supply chains should be protected.

Just as the COVID-2019 epidemic appears to be under control in China, new and serious outbreaks have occurred in South Korea, Italy, Japan, Iran and elsewhere. The virus seems to be ubiquitous and unstoppable. While I am hopeful that the epidemic in China will be over by the end of March, I begin to worry about the possibility of overseas visitors to China bringing the COVID-2019 virus back, starting another episode of the epidemic again. China cannot afford to have its hard-won and costly victory over the COVID-2019 virus annulled by a few infected visitors from abroad.

Last October, the 2019 Global Health Security Report included a stark warning: “National health security is fundamentally weak around the world. No country is fully prepared for epidemics or pandemics, and every country has important gaps to address.” Just a couple of months later, a new coronavirus emerged in Wuhan, China – and quickly demonstrated the accuracy of the report’s assessment.

Globalization offers context for the identity politics that grips political life everywhere. China knows that that balancing market efficacy and social justice is essential.

Weakening political will on the part of the United States and others is undermining the global commons necessary for good global governance. That’s where China comes in.

A recent report by Mackenzie said that the country’s dependence on the world has shrunk, even as the world’s dependence on Chinese production and exports has continued to rise.

Its new ideas and approaches are broadly beneficial and have already involved many countries, even as the United States and others have tried to impede progress for selfish reasons.