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China Rejects CIA Claim on COVID-19 Lab Leak


Nairobi: China on Monday dismissed the lab leak theory on COVID-19 origins proposed by the CIA, calling it baseless and emphasizing the need for scientific investigation, state media reported.

According to Anadolu Agency, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning addressed the issue during a press briefing in Beijing, stating that the origin of the coronavirus is a scientific issue that should be determined by scientists in a scientific spirit. She asserted that the lab leak scenario is highly unlikely. Mao referenced conclusions drawn from the joint expert team of China and the World Health Organization (WHO), which conducted on-site visits to relevant labs in Wuhan and engaged in comprehensive discussions with scientific researchers.

The CIA’s new development backing the lab leak theory suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic may have originated from an accidental lab leak in Wuhan, rather than from natural transmission at a wet market. This theory arises from a reassessment based on closer analysis of existing e
vidence, including the conditions at Wuhan’s high-security laboratories prior to the outbreak, rather than new intelligence.

The first cases of the virus were reported in Wuhan, central China, in December 2019, and it subsequently spread worldwide, leading to national lockdowns and causing nearly seven million deaths. Despite this, Mao reiterated the findings of the China-WHO joint investigation, which concluded that a lab leak was ‘highly unlikely.’ She emphasized that this determination has been widely recognized by the international and scientific communities.

China has consistently rejected claims from Western nations suggesting a lab origin for the pandemic. Mao urged the US to cease politicizing and instrumentalizing the issue of the virus’s origin, to stop smearing other countries, and shifting blame. She called on Washington to respond to the international community’s concerns, share data on early suspected cases with the WHO, and clarify doubts about the US biological laboratory, in order to provid
e a responsible explanation to the global populace.