President Trump on Saturday hinted that he’s looking at unspecified “consequences” for China if it’s proven that the country was knowingly responsible for the global spread of the coronavirus.
“If they were knowingly responsible, certainly. If it was a mistake, a mistake is a mistake. But if they were knowingly responsible, yeah, then there should be consequences,” Mr. Trump said at the White House.
“I haven’t ruled out anything — I want to look at the facts as they come in,” he said.
During the White House briefing on the coronavirus outbreak, Mr. Trump repeatedly cast doubt on the death toll being reported by China, where the virus was first discovered late last year.
He said Saturday that the spread “could have been stopped in China before it started and it wasn’t and the whole world is suffering.”
U.S. officials are looking into the possibility that the spread of the virus originated from a research lab in Wuhan, perhaps unwittingly, rather than from a nearby “wet market” in Wuhan.
Mr. Trump has moved to withhold U.S. funding for the World Health Organization, saying the group flubbed the response to COVID-19 by too eagerly accepting Beijing’s narrative about the extent of the problem in China.
But he has been less willing to directly criticize Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“China has been working very hard to contain the Coronavirus. The United States greatly appreciates their efforts and transparency. It will all work out well. In particular, on behalf of the American People, I want to thank President Xi!” Mr. Trump tweeted on Jan. 24.
