China has accused the United States of being the source of the COVID-19 pandemic, challenging long-standing claims that the virus originated in Wuhan.
In a white paper released Wednesday by the State Council Information Office, Chinese authorities argued that the coronavirus may have emerged in the United States before the outbreak was officially detected in China. The report is seen as a direct rebuttal to renewed accusations by the Trump campaign, which insists the virus leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), known for its coronavirus research.
“The U.S. government, instead of acknowledging its own failures in responding to COVID-19, has politicized the search for the virus’s origin to deflect responsibility,” the white paper stated. Chinese officials said a thorough investigation into the virus’s origins should take place in the United States, pointing to early cases of respiratory illnesses and antibody detections that predate China’s first confirmed case.
The report also cited a CDC-backed study that found SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in samples collected across nine U.S. states as early as December 2019. China argued this could indicate the virus was circulating in the U.S. before it surfaced globally.
Beijing accused Washington of using China as a scapegoat for what it described as America’s slow and dismissive pandemic response. “The U.S. downplayed the virus in its early stages, comparing it to the flu and claiming it would disappear,” the document said.
Despite the Chinese claims, many scientists worldwide continue to believe the virus most likely jumped from animals to humans in a natural spillover event.
The Chinese white paper called on the U.S. to respond to international concerns and “stop pretending to be deaf and dumb” about its own pandemic timeline and early outbreaks.
The publication follows the launch of a new COVID-related website by the U.S. government, which reiterates the theory of a lab leak and criticizes previous leaders’ handling of the crisis, including President Joe Biden and Dr. Anthony Fauci.
