China opposes investigation into Covid-19

Mr. Lac said that we should not accuse China and then conduct research to fabricate evidence, affirming that calls for an investigation are based on baseless assumptions.

China's vice minister rejected suggestions that the country initially covered up Covid-19 or that Beijing should bear financial responsibility for the pandemic's consequences, calling it a "natural disaster" and calling for greater cooperation and an end to accusations.

Beijing has repeatedly been suspected of covering up the outbreak by tightly controlling information about Covid-19, reprimanding those who tried to warn about the disease such as Dr. Li Wenliang, as well as downplaying the threat of nCoV by initially announcing that the virus was not transmitted from person to person and not releasing actual infection and death figures.

Mr. Luo's comments came amid calls from many countries for an independent international investigation into the origins and handling of Covid-19. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has vowed to pursue this goal despite threats of an economic boycott from China. Swedish Health Minister Lena Hallegren also said that conducting an investigation is "important and reasonable".

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called on China to be “transparent” in a tweet on April 27. “The world is seeking answers about Covid-19 and its origins. China has a responsibility to cooperate,” he wrote. Pompeo had previously said Beijing would “pay a price” for its actions.

Covid-19 originated in Wuhan, China in December 2019, and has appeared in 210 countries and territories, with the current epicenter of the pandemic being the US and Europe. Globally, nearly 3.2 million nCoV infections have been recorded, nearly 228,000 people have died, and more than 981,000 have recovered.