UNITED NATIONS, March 28. /TASS/. Russia has submitted an initiative to the United Nations General Assembly that a declaration on global cooperation in the fight against the coronavirus be adopted, the Russian mission to the UN said in a statement on its website.

"On 26 March 2020 the Russian Federation submitted to the UN General Assembly an initiative to adopt a UNGA Declaration on solidarity in countering the coronavirus," the statement reads.

"The project is based on the principle of the UN Charter on cooperation of states that is reflected in the UN Declaration on Principles of International Law of 1970. The initiated Declaration, in particular, suggests recognizing the leading role of the WHO in combating the pandemic; envisages consent of states to cooperate with each other and with the WHO, i.a. in order to develop methods that should stop the spread and ensure treatment of the COVID-19 disease; provide assistance to the most vulnerable states, especially developing countries; abandon trade wars and unilateral sanctions adopted in circumvention of the UN Security Council; prevent discrimination of states, peoples and individuals with regard to the pandemic; counter financial speculations in basic necessity items; recognize the need to spread only reliable and science-based information about the pandemic," the Russian mission specified.

"The Russian Federation has commenced collection of comments on the initiative," the statement added.