Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday urged the World Health Organization (WHO) to take a closer look at the laboratory in Wuhan, China, where the COVID-19 pandemic is believed to have originated – while demanding that Beijing provide a “complete and complete report” counts.
“The United States has repeatedly called for a transparent and thorough investigation into the origin of COVID-19. Understanding the origin of this pandemic is essential for global public health, economic recovery and international security,” Pompeo said in a statement.
WHO SCIENTISTS COME TO WUHAN TO INVESTIGATE THE ORIGINS OF THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
His statement came as 13 WHO scientists arrived in Wuhan this week to investigate the origins of the pandemic, which has killed hundreds of thousands of people and torpedoed economies around the world.
The U.S. has long voiced doubts about WHO, and President Trump ended the U.S. relationship with the UN body last year amid questions about his preference for China and his acceptance of early accounts of the virus. The United States was the agency’s main contributor, with approximately $ 450 million a year.
The United States criticized WHO officials’ praise for Chinese “transparency”, their “ignorance of the warnings about the Taiwan virus” and their repetition of Chinese claims that COVID-19 could not be transmitted from person to person. Trump also pointed to the opposition of WHO officials to his decision to ban travel to China in the early days of the crisis.
On Friday, the State Department shared what it said was new information about the laboratory in Wuhan, specifically that researchers fell ill in the fall of 2019 with symptoms consistent with COVID and seasonal illnesses. Pompeo said he raises questions about the authorities’ claims that there was “zero infection” between staff and students.
THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE SAYS RESEARCHERS AT WUHAN LAB MAY HAVE COVENS IN THE AUTUMN OF 2019
In addition, it urges WHO to investigate the Wuhan laboratory’s research on the virus, accusing it of not being transparent about the “function gain” experiments to increase lethality or transmission – as well as the laboratory’s alleged links to military research.
Pompeo then attacked China again for his lack of responsibility and refusal to accept aid.
“Instead, China refused offers of help – including from the United States – and punished brave Chinese doctors, scientists and journalists who tried to alert the world to the dangers of the virus,” he said. “Beijing today continues to retain vital information that scientists need to protect the world from this deadly virus and the next one.”
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“The United States reiterates the importance of unrestricted access to virus samples, records and laboratory personnel, eye witnesses and whistleblowers to ensure the credibility of the WHO final report,” he added. “Until the CCP allows a full and complete account of what happened in Wuhan, it is only a matter of time before China creates another pandemic and inflicts it on the Chinese people and the world.”