Chinese Foreign Ministry Information Department spokesman Zhao Lijian, who last month suggested the coronavirus was a weapon devised by the U.S. military and covertly deployed in Wuhan, on Monday applauded Russia and the World Health Organization (WHO) for their responses to the global pandemic.
As Breitbart News previously reported, Zhao is the official mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
He is given to openly speculating about the origins of the coronavirus while airing his own conspiracy theories about alleged, nefarious collusion between U.S. spy agencies:
Some #influenza deaths were actually infected with #COVID-19, Robert Redfield from US #CDC admitted at the House of Representatives. US reported 34 million cases of influenza and 20,000 deaths. Please tell us how many are related to COVID-19? @CDCDirector pic.twitter.com/vYNZRFPWo3
— Lijian Zhao 赵立坚 (@zlj517) March 12, 2020
2/2 CDC was caught on the spot. When did patient zero begin in US? How many people are infected? What are the names of the hospitals? It might be US army who brought the epidemic to Wuhan. Be transparent! Make public your data! US owe us an explanation! pic.twitter.com/vYNZRFPWo3
— Lijian Zhao 赵立坚 (@zlj517) March 12, 2020
On Monday at a daily CCP briefing, Zhao was asked by a friendly Chinese TV reporter to comment on Russia’s belief that: “At all stages of the COVID-19 outbreak, WHO acted within its mandate, in strict accordance with the guidelines of member states and based on available scientific data.”
He opened by saying this is a time for the global community to pull together, urging that “countries should transcend ideological differences and refrain from groundless accusations and suspicions. In particular, they should avoid politicizing anti-pandemic cooperation and shifting blame to others.”
Zhao then went straight to the point of gushingly thanking the WHO for its work and promising China would stand with it at all times. He said:
Since the outbreak of the pandemic, the WHO has upheld an objective, scientific and just position, actively performed its duties, and played an important role in assisting countries in responding to the pandemic and promoting international anti-pandemic cooperation. Recently, the U.N. Secretary-General and many heads of state and representatives of international organizations expressed support for the WHO. The U.N. General Assembly adopted a consensus resolution which recognizes WHO’s role in countering the spread of COVID-19. The statement of the recent Extraordinary G20 Leaders’ Summit on COVID-19 stressed that member states fully support and remain committed to further strengthening the WHO’s mandate in coordinating the international fight against the pandemic. This highlights the common position of the international community.
At present, the pandemic is spreading all over the world. The international community should work together to defeat this common enemy. China will continue to work with the international community, including Russia, to support WHO’s continued leadership in global anti-pandemic cooperation.
The U.S. government has previously lodged “stern representations” with the Chinese embassy over the antics of Zhao, who remains the loudest and highest-ranking pusher of conspiracy theories about alleged American origins for the Wuhan virus.
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