United States President Donald Trump claimed he has seen evidence the new coronavirus originated in a Chinese lab, as he threatened tariffs on Beijing over its role in the global pandemic.
Trump’s assertion was immediately undermined by his intelligence chief and by his top diplomat, who said: “We don’t know precisely where it began.”
Scientists believe the virus jumped from animals to humans, emerging in China late last year, possibly from a market selling exotic animals for meat.
But speculation has swirled about a top-secret lab, reinforced by internet rumors and right-wing shock jocks – and increasingly taken up by the US president.
Asked if he had seen anything giving him a high degree of confidence that the Wuhan Institute of Virology was the source of the outbreak, Trump replied, “Yes, I have.”
He refused to give details.
However, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo indicated he had not seen definitive evidence.
“We don’t know precisely where it began,” he said.
“We don’t know if it came from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. We don’t know if it emanated from the wet market or yet some other place. We don’t know those answers.”
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence said analysts “will continue to rigorously examine emerging information and intelligence to determine” the source of the outbreak.
China’s denial
Beijing has denied the lab was the source of the virus.
Last month, foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said: “[World Health Organization] officials have repeatedly stated that there is no single evidence that the new coronavirus was produced in a laboratory.”
“Many well-known medical experts in the world also believe that the so-called laboratory leak hypothesis has no scientific basis.”
Trump is making Beijing’s handling of the outbreak a major issue for his November re-election campaign.
When asked about reports that he could cancel US debt obligations to China, Trump said he could “do it differently” and act in “more of a forthright manner.”
“I could do the same thing but even for more money, just putting on tariffs,” he said.
Hope for China invitation
The World Health Organization said Friday it hoped China would invite it to take part in its investigations into the animal origins of the novel coronavirus.
“WHO would be keen to work with international partners and at the invitation of the Chinese government to participate in investigation around the animal origins,” WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told AFP in an email.
He said the UN health agency understood there were a number of investigations under way in China “to better understand the source of the outbreak,” but added that “WHO is not currently involved in the studies in China.”
Scientists believe the killer virus jumped from animals to humans, emerging in China late last year, possibly from a market in Wuhan selling exotic animals for meat.
Easing restrictions
Australia will consider early easing of coronavirus restrictions next week, officials announced Friday, as the number of local cases dwindled and the economic impact of the crisis fell into painful relief.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the national cabinet would meet on May 8 – a week earlier than expected – to weigh loosening social distancing measures that have kept millions of Australians at home, barred almost all travel and slowed business to a crawl.
“We need to restart our economy. We need to restart our society. We can’t keep Australia under the doona,” Morrison said, using a local term for a duvet.
“We need to be able to move ahead.”
Australia has detected almost 7,000 COVID-19 infections, but new daily cases are now close to single figures. Some parts of the country have not seen a case in more than a week.
Malaysia to reopen
Malaysia will allow most businesses to reopen from next week, the prime minister said Friday, easing a lockdown to fight the spread of the coronavirus as the country’s outbreak slows.
The Southeast Asian nation in mid-March ordered the closure of all but essential businesses as well as schools and asked people to stay home, as cases surged.
But the number of new infections has slowed markedly in recent weeks, with fewer than 100 reported most days. In total, the country has recorded about 6,000 cases and 100 deaths so far.
Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said that from Monday “almost all economic sectors and business activities will be allowed to operate subject to conditions.”