China’s Embassy Claims COVID-19 Leaks from US Amid Feud
China Embassy in the US and Covid-19 (Image credit X.com)
China Embassy White Paper on COVID-19 Origins Sparks U.S. Feud, Rejects Trump’s Lab Leak Claims
By TRH News Desk
New Delhi, April 30, 2025 — China’s Embassy in the U.S. released a white paper on Wednesday detailing its COVID-19 response and origins tracing, intensifying a diplomatic feud with the U.S. over the pandemic’s source.
The release comes amid renewed accusations from President Donald Trump’s administration, which has blamed a Chinese lab leak for the virus. The claim gained traction after the White House launched a COVID-19 website on April 18, 2025, reiterating the lab leak theory.
China’s white paper counters these allegations, suggesting the virus may have originated in the U.S. and calling for origin-tracing efforts to shift focus to American soil.
Citing a 2021 joint study by the World Health Organization (WHO) and China, which concluded a lab leak was “extremely unlikely,” the paper accuses the U.S. of ignoring scientific evidence and politicizing the pandemic’s origins.
A Chinese National Health Commission official, quoted by Xinhua, urged the U.S. to address international concerns rather than deflecting blame. “The U.S. should not continue to pretend to be deaf and dumb,” the official said, according to the state news agency.
The white paper’s release coincides with heightened U.S.-China tensions on multiple fronts. In January, President Trump threatened 100% tariffs on BRICS nations, including China, to deter them from replacing the U.S. dollar in global trade.
U.S. Senate Pushes Lab Leak Investigation
The COVID-19 origins debate has also reignited in the U.S. Congress. In the United States, Senator Marsha Blackburn has been a vocal proponent of the lab leak theory, proposing a bill that would allow lawsuits against China for allegedly using a “biological weapon.”
Blackburn’s rhetoric, which includes claims of China’s “5,000-year history of cheating and stealing,” has drawn criticism for fueling anti-China sentiment, according to a Wikipedia entry updated on April 22, 2025.
The lab leak theory gained traction in the U.S. after early media reports in 2020 and saw a resurgence in 2021 when WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for further investigation into the hypothesis.
However, the WHO’s 2023 decision to abandon its original probe into SARS-CoV-2 origins, delegating the task to its Scientific Advisory Group for Origins of Novel Pathogens, has frustrated lab leak advocates like the internet activist group DRASTIC.
China’s latest white paper marks a shift from seeking dialogue to projecting defiance, as Beijing leverages platforms like X to shape global narratives.
The embassy’s post on X, which included a link to the full white paper, sparked varied reactions, with some users questioning China’s transparency and others accusing the U.S. of scapegoating.
Follow The Raisina Hills on WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn
About The Author
