‘Barefaced lies’: Beijing accuses US politicians of ‘shifting blame’ for Covid-19 outbreak

The US has failed to accept responsibility for the coronavirus pandemic, Beijing is claiming in the latest development in the ongoing war of words between the two countries.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang had to comment on the matter during a press briefing, after multiple US politicians directly accused China of mishandling the coronavirus outbreak. US President Donald Trump threatened to seek damages from China for not reporting the virus early enough and displaying a lack of transparency at the early stages of the outbreak.Geng dismissed these accusations as an attempt to “shift the blame” for the handling of the pandemic onto China by other international actors.

Another outspoken critic of Beijing – White House trade adviser Peter Navarro – has made public claims that the antibody testing kits sent to the US from China were defective and gave incorrect readings. Geng dismissed Navarro's accusations and told reporters that “American politicians have repeatedly ignored the truth and have been telling barefaced lies,” as reported by AFP.

Geng went on to say that the US' accusations are nothing but than an attempt to “shirk their responsibility for their own poor epidemic prevention and control measures” and are an effort to “divert public attention.”

The ongoing Covid-19 information war between the US and China has seen both sides play the blame game. Donald Trump has antagonistically referred to Covid-19 as the “China Virus” on several occasions. Beijing responded with claims that Washington should stop “politicizing” the pandemic.

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