WEB DESK
China on Friday claimed that the coronavirus broke out in the various parts of the world last year but it was the only one to have reported and acted first.
It aslo refuted the widely-held view that the deadly contagion originated in Wuhan before turning out to be a pandemic.
China hopes certain U.S. politicians will stop blaming other countries over responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, as blaming others will not drive COVID-19 away or save the sick, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Friday.
Spokesperson Hua Chunying’s remarks came after certain U.S. politicians made accusations against China over the pandemic during a meeting in Tokyo with the foreign ministers of Japan, India and Australia.
“It is hoped that relevant countries will bear in mind the common interests of all countries and mankind, focus on strengthening cooperation to combat the pandemic, and create a peaceful environment and cooperation opportunities for global economic recovery. That serves the common interests of all countries,” Hua said.
The timeline of China’s fight against COVID-19 is clear and China’s anti-epidemic efforts and achievements are obvious to all, Hua said. “China’s respect for science and fact, and its commitment to putting life and people first, have contributed to the country’s major strategic achievements in the fight against COVID-19.”
Noting that there are currently nearly 7.6 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and more than 210,000 cumulative deaths in the United States, Hua asked, “As the world’s most powerful country with the best medical resources, why did the United States exhibit such a shocking response to the pandemic?”
“Earlier, U.S. media also reported that the earliest case of infection in the United States may have occurred in October last year. What has the United States done? Why wasn’t the epidemic situation detected and reported in time? Why weren’t comprehensive detection and epidemic prevention measures taken in time?” Hua asked.
“Isn’t the loss of 210,000 lives enough to awaken the consciences of those American politicians?” Hua asked.
China, besides denying the US allegations that COVID-19 has emerged from a bio-lab in Wuhan, also rejected that it emanated from a wet market in the central Chinese city from bats or pangolins before infecting humans.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry statement was made as the World Health Organisation (WHO) was gearing up to probe the origin of the deadly coronavirus. According to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, the contagion has infected over 36 million people and killed more than 1 million across the world.
The WHO has given to Beijing a list of global experts to be sent to China to probe the origin of the coronavirus, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported on Thursday. The WHO is awaiting its approval. In May, the annual meeting of the World Health Assembly (WHA), the Geneva-based WHO’s decision-making body currently headed by India, passed a unanimous resolution to probe the origin of the virus. China also backed the resolution.