The Flawed Logic in China’s Recent Statement Blaming the US for COVID Outbreak

A laboratory technician works on samples to be tested for COVID-19 at the Fire Eye laboratory, a COVID-19 testing facility, in Wuhan, China, on Aug. 5, 2021. STR/AFP via Getty Images

Commentary

On April 30, China issued an official statement claiming that “substantial evidence“ suggests that the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus may be in the United States. The statement accused the Trump administration of attempting to ”shift the blame” by asserting that the virus leaked from the Wuhan lab.

As a virologist who has been closely following the development of COVID-19 and related research, I aim to provide a scientific and objective analysis of the issues raised in the statement.

1. The recent statement from China’s State Council could not deny the existence of laboratory safety breaches, incidents, or potential loopholes at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV)  and/or other related institutes. Instead, it chose to overlook these issues and did not address them at all in the statement. It also failed to respond to the key evidence presented by the White House regarding the lab leak theory from WIV, including: 1) the unusual biological characteristics of the viral sequence; 2) a single introduction to humans; 3) WIV’s inadequate biosafety measures; and 4) reports of WIV researchers exhibiting COVID-like symptoms in the fall of 2019.
2. Another key point in the White House statement regarding the lab leak theory is: “By nearly all measures of science, if there was evidence of a natural origin, it would have already surfaced. But it hasn’t.” Over the past five years, the CCP has consistently denied the possibility of a lab leak, instead pointing to various animals, such as pangolins, as potential intermediate hosts. This new official statement from the CCP State Council clearly signals a shift, with the denial of the lab leak theory now giving way to a political move, as they attempt to blame the United States for the origin of the outbreak.
3. China’s recent statement also failed to address its cover-up of the outbreak in late 2019 and January 2020, as well as the censorship and punishment of Chinese doctors who exposed the situation. It did not explain why, despite Wuhan clearly suffering from the outbreak, the CCP allowed residents to travel abroad while restricting domestic travel within China. This new statement clearly indicates that the CCP can no longer deny its role in facilitating the global spread of the COVID virus.
4. Regarding the virus leak incidents in the United States mentioned in the CCP’s statement, it’s important to recognize that research projects involving select agents and toxins inherently carry significant risks. The U.S. CDC and military medical research institutes have never claimed that their safety protocols are flawless. Even with routine inspections, there have been instances of protocol breaches and safety issues. These incidents have been reported by U.S. media, and the public is aware of them. For example, the 2019 closure of the Fort Detrick lab, which was highlighted in the CCP’s statement, received extensive coverage in U.S. media. One local ABC station provided detailed reports on safety breaches observed at the facility: (a) The CDC reported that an individual partially entered a room multiple times without the required respiratory protection while other people in that room were performing procedures with a non-human primate on a necropsy table. (b) The CDC reported that the lab did not ensure that employee training was properly verified when it comes to toxins and select agents. (c) The CDC reported the incident of a worker not wearing gloves while disposing of biohazardous waste. (d) The CDC noted that the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases had “systematically failed to ensure implementation of biosafety and containment procedures commensurate with the risks associated with working with select agents and toxins.” (e) The CDC reported that the laboratory failed to prevent unauthorized access to select agents. They stated that personal protective equipment used during the decontamination of items contaminated with a select agent had been stored in open biohazard bags, in an area of the facility that the CDC has redacted for security reasons.

Therefore, it is clear that the U.S. public was not entirely unaware of the incidents, although some details were withheld due to national security concerns. In contrast, the CCP has engaged in complete denial, cover-ups, media and social media censorship, and a staged investigation for the World Health Organization (WHO). Furthermore, no independent entities have had access to the key raw data and original samples collected in Wuhan.

5. The CCP is aggressively pushing the narrative that COVID originated in the United States. This is not new, as it has been repeating the same accusation through official outlets like Global Times since the outbreak began. However, this accusation lacks scientific evidence. For example, the CCP cited a CDC report that identified SARS-CoV-2-reactive antibodies in blood samples collected from December 2019 to January 2020, where 7,389 blood samples were collected from routine blood donations by the American Red Cross.

However, these samples were not from patients with respiratory symptoms. Although the study identified 106 samples showing reactivity in pan-Ig testing, there was no solid evidence indicating the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in these samples, as some antibodies against common coronaviruses could cross-react with SARS-CoV-2 antigens. The authors of the report also noted that these samples were not “true positive” samples, as no SARS-CoV-2 antigen molecular test data were associated with them.

Other countries, like Italy, also have similar reports suggesting the potential early entry of COVID through serological testing of blood samples collected in 2019. However, there were no small COVID outbreaks or cluster cases in the United States or other countries in 2019. As a result, the global consensus is that the true COVID outbreak began in China, specifically in Wuhan, in 2019.

6. The ultimate goal of the CCP’s recent statement is to avoid accountability for spreading COVID worldwide and turning it into a global pandemic that has claimed millions of lives. The recent White House statement on the true origin of COVID-19 marks a turning point, signaling that the United States is taking the issue seriously and is committed to holding the CCP accountable, rather than getting caught up in debates about its origin. The CCP, deeply fearful of this approach, is desperately trying to distract the global community by focusing on the virus’s origin and calling for a new phase of investigation centered on the United States. This is yet another tactic of cognitive warfare that the CCP uses when facing global isolation and pressure, especially during the trade war. Known as “Jiao Hun Shui” (攪渾水) in Chinese, or “stirring up the muddy water,” it is designed to create confusion. The United States and the global community should disregard the CCP’s arguments and remain steadfast in holding the CCP accountable.