China firmly opposes U.S. political manipulation on COVID-19 origin-tracing: FM

(ECNS) -- China firmly opposes the U.S. political manipulation on the COVID-19 origin-tracing issue, foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Tuesday at a regular press conference.

Last weekend, the White House published an article on its website, alleging that COVID-19 originated from a lab leak in China.

Guo pointed out that rehashing the "lab leak" theory and smearing China with unsubstantiated accusations is just another ploy the U.S. uses for political manipulation under the pretext of COVID origins-tracing.

The origins-tracing of the virus is a serious scientific issue, the spokesperson said, adding that China has actively supported and participated in global science-based origins-tracing in the spirit of science, openness, and transparency.

The U.S. must stop politicizing and weaponizing origins-tracing at once, stop scapegoating others, and should stop playing deaf to the questions concerning its role in the pandemic, he said.

The U.S. still owes the international community a serious response to those legitimate concerns, and a responsible explanation to the people of the world, the spokesperson added.

(By Zhang Dongfang)