Addis Ababa, August 31, 2021 (Walta) – Ethiopian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen spoke with the Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the phone.
During their conversation, Demeke said the Ethiopian side believes that origins tracing should not be politicized and must be carried out with a scientific attitude and method. Chinese side speaks highly about this.
On August 28, Ma Zhaoxu, Vice Foreign Minister of China, delivered a statement on the release of the US intelligence report on COVID-19 origins.
Ma underscored the US intelligence community has recently compiled a so-called report on the origins of COVID-19. It is a mendacious report made up for political purposes. There is no scientific basis or credibility in it. The US has also released a statement slandering and attacking China. The Chinese side has expressed its firm objection and has made strong representations with the US.
Ma said China has stressed on multiple occasions that the origins tracing of COVID-19 is a complex issue of science. It should and can only be undertaken by scientists around the world through joint research. The US, however, disregards science and facts. It is instead obsessed with political manipulation and origins tracing by the intelligence community. Without providing any evidence, the US has cooked up one story after another to defame and accuse China. The aim is to use origins tracing to shift blame onto China and spread the political virus. The deployment of the intelligence community in origins tracing is in itself compelling evidence of the politicization of the issue.
Ma stressed it is sheer nonsense that the US accused China of not being transparent or cooperative on origins tracing. China attaches great importance to international scientific cooperation on origins tracing and has taken an active part in such cooperation. Acting on the principles of science, openness, and transparency, China has twice invited WHO experts to China for origins tracing research. Early this year, a WHO-China joint study team of leading international and Chinese experts conducted 28-day research in China. The team released a Joint Report containing authoritative, professional, and science-based conclusions, which is a good foundation for international cooperation on origins tracing. China has been supporting science-based efforts on origins tracing and will continue to stay actively engaged. That said, China firmly opposes attempts to politicize this issue.
According to the press release, Ma also emphasized it is actually the US that is not being transparent, responsible, and cooperative on this issue. The US has been refusing to respond to the international community’s reasonable doubts on the Fort Detrick bio lab and the over 200 overseas bases for biological experiments, trying to cover up the truth and avoid being held responsible. The onus is on the US to give the world an answer.
Ma noticed the US attempts to politicize origins tracing have found no support and met widespread opposition from the international community: More than 80 countries have written to the WHO Director-General, issued statements, or sent diplomatic notes to voice their objection to the politicization attempts and call for the Joint Report by the WHO-China joint study team to be upheld; over 300 political parties, social organizations and think tanks from more than 100 countries and regions have submitted a joint statement to the WHO Secretariat on opposing the politicization of origins tracing; and over 25 million Chinese public have signed an open letter asking for an inquiry into the Fort Detrick base. These are people’s calls for justice.
According to the information obtained from the Embassy of the People’s republic of china in Ethiopia, China wants to once again warn the US side that politicizing origins tracing will lead nowhere. China urges the US to immediately stop doing anything that poisons the atmosphere for international cooperation on origins tracing or undermines global solidarity against the pandemic, and return to the right track of science-based origins tracing and cooperation in the face of the pandemic.