World Economic Forum postpones Davos Agenda 2022 over COVID-19 concerns

Dec. 20 (UPI) -- The World Economic Forum's meeting in Davos, Switzerland, has been postponed due to uncertainty over COVID-19, organizers announced Monday.

The in-person event was scheduled to be held from Jan. 17-21, but with a surge of Omicron variant-related cases, the organization opted to stay on the safe side.

WEF said it would be "extremely difficult" to host the meeting next month because of pandemic conditions.

The meeting will be rescheduled to summer 2022.

"Participants will instead join a headline series of State of the World sessions bringing together global leaders online to focus on shaping solutions to the world's most pressing challenges," the World Economic Forum said in a statement.

The event is annually held in the ski-resort town of Davos and is considered a cornerstone of international relations.

Heads of government, business executives and activists often attend the meeting to discuss global issues.

Former President Donald Trump attended the meeting twice in 2018 and 2020, skipping 2019 due to a partial government shutdown. U.S. President Joe Biden was expected to skip January's meeting.

Last year's meeting was held virtually.