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The corona virus first appeared in Wuhan.
© APA (AFP)
In the crown crisis, international criticism of China increases. In a Western intelligence document, Beijing is severely criticized for dealing with the epidemic. The dossier of the secret service alliance “Five Eyes” of the United States, Great Britain, Australia, Canada and New Zealand summarizes the accusations, as the Australian newspaper “Saturday Telegraph” reported over the weekend.
The file documents the cover-up by the Chinese authorities and points to a risky investigation in a laboratory in the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the new corona virus first appeared in December. The 15-page document “Five Eyes” demonstrates the momentum of the ongoing intelligence investigations. However, according to the newspaper, he also mentions their differences regarding the suspicion that the virus could actually have come from the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
The President of the United States, Donald Trump, had caused speculation about it. According to his own statements, Trump has evidence that the pandemic may have originated from that research laboratory in Wuhan. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also told ABC that there was “significant” evidence that the crisis started in that laboratory. When asked, he said that he should not comment on the details. However, Pompeo accused China of having operated laboratories in the past without the necessary standards. It is not the first time that the world has been exposed to a virus due to a mistake in a Chinese laboratory.
Wuhan laboratory chief Yuan Zhiming long ago rejected allegations that the coronavirus had been released there. Scientists believe that SARS-CoV-2 is much more likely to have been transmitted from bats to another animal and through the wildlife trade. Therefore, China banned trade in wild animals in March.
Scientists have also shown that the virus is not artificially generated, but that it is naturally occurring, as confirmed by US intelligence agencies last week. The secret service document “Five Eyes” refers to dangerous research work in the laboratory using bat viruses, although this was also done in collaboration with American and Australian scientists.
According to the “Saturday Telegraph”, the newspaper forms the basis for the allegations that the secret services are investigating. He notes how Chinese authorities suppressed early medical warnings, downplayed the true scope of the outbreak, and censored the information, which has also appeared in media reports. The cover-up is described in the dossier as an “attack on international transparency”.
He particularly complains that China denied until January 20 that the virus was transmitted from person to person. There have been signs of this since early December, according to the newspaper. China is also accused of destroying virus samples and strictly monitoring scientific publications on the virus. Chinese authorities have also refused to make live samples available to international researchers.
Pompeo also accused Chinese leaders of trying to cover them up and confuse them, causing great harm. When asked about the possible consequences for Beijing, he said: “We will hold those responsible accountable.” Meanwhile, other states have also recognized that China caused the crisis.
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