Latest news with #WHO-China
Roya News
01-05-2025
- Health
- Roya News
China pushes back, claims COVID-19 may have started in US
China has reiterated its claim that COVID-19 may have originated in the US, challenging the US narrative in a newly published white paper detailing Beijing's pandemic response. The document was released Wednesday through the state-run Xinhua news agency, shortly after the White House reasserted its belief that the virus stemmed from a laboratory in China. The Trump administration recently launched a new government website on April 18, outlining its position that the coronavirus leaked from a Chinese lab. The page also criticizes former US President Joe Biden, former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Director Dr. Anthony Fauci, and the World Health Organization (WHO) for what it describes as mishandling the early stages of the pandemic. In its white paper, Beijing accused Washington of politicizing the virus's origin and referenced a Missouri lawsuit in which China was ordered to pay USD 24 billion for allegedly stockpiling protective medical equipment and covering up the initial outbreak. China defended its own transparency, insisting it had 'shared relevant information with the WHO and the international community in a timely manner,' and pointed to a joint WHO-China study that concluded a lab leak was 'extremely unlikely.' 'The US should not continue to 'pretend to be deaf and dumb,' but should respond to the legitimate concerns of the international community,' the white paper said. The Chinese report also claimed there is 'substantial evidence' suggesting the virus may have first appeared in the US, potentially even before the official Chinese timeline. Although the CIA updated its stance in January to say a lab origin in China was more likely than a natural emergence, it did so with 'low confidence' and acknowledged that both theories remain viable.
Time of India
01-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Covid-19 may have emerged in US first: China tells America to ‘stop playing deaf and dumb', urges probe in new white paper
Beijing hits back at lab leak theory, accuses Washington of politicising the pandemic and calls for probe into early US cases China has reignited the contentious debate over the origins of Covid-19 by releasing a white paper that accuses the United States of politicising the issue and suggests the virus may have emerged in America before it was detected in Wuhan. The white paper, published Wednesday via state-run Xinhua news agency, comes in response to renewed allegations from Washington, Reuters reported. On April 18, the US government launched an official Covid-19 website reiterating claims that the virus leaked from a lab in China. The site also criticized former President Joe Biden, Dr Anthony Fauci, and the World Health Organization for failing to hold China accountable. China's white paper pushes back, citing a Missouri lawsuit that resulted in a symbolic $24 billion ruling against China, accusing Beijing of hoarding personal protective equipment and covering up the initial outbreak. The document calls the ruling politically motivated and legally flawed. 'Substantial evidence suggested the Covid-19 might have emerged in the United States earlier than its officially-claimed timeline, and earlier than the outbreak in China,' the paper asserts, urging the international community to investigate early US cases. China said it had shared relevant information with the WHO and other countries in a timely and transparent manner. It highlighted the joint WHO-China study, which concluded that a lab leak was 'extremely unlikely.' 'The US should not continue to pretend to be deaf and dumb,' the white paper mentioned, urging Washington to address global concerns rather than deflect blame. Earlier this year, the CIA said it leaned slightly toward the lab-leak theory over natural origin but admitted having 'low confidence' in its assessment. It maintained that both scenarios remained plausible. An official from China's National Health Commission also told Xinhua that future origin-tracing efforts should now focus on the United States. With both sides digging in, the renewed exchange signals that the question of Covid-19's origin remains a geopolitical flashpoint with no clear end in sight.
