John Kirby’s statements come a day after mutual accusations between Washington and Beijing, following a report indicating that the spread of Covid was mainly due to a laboratory leak.
A spokesman for the US National Security Council, John Kirby, announced that the US government has not yet reached a final consensus on the origin of the Corona virus.
Kirby’s statements to reporters come a day after mutual accusations between Washington and Beijing, following a press report indicating an American conclusion that the spread of Covid occurred after a laboratory leak in Wuhan, China.
Kirby said: the Federal Intelligence and ministries in the US government continue investigations. Recent reports have not been definitive conclusions. What President Joe Biden wants is just the facts.
Republican intervention
The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that the Energy Department had reached a “low confidence” finding supporting the so-called laboratory leak theory of the origins of the virus, in a classified finding shared with the White House and members of Congress.
For its part, the Department of Energy declined to comment on the newspaper article, saying through a spokesperson: “We continue to support the comprehensive, careful and objective work of our intelligence professionals in investigating the origins of Covid.”
The findings gave new arguments to Republican lawmakers in Congress, who alleged that federal officials had covered up the origins of a virus that has killed more than a million Americans.
Two Republicans, who are leading the House’s COVID investigations, have asked the Departments of Energy and State and the FBI to provide documents related to the case.
Republican Representative James Comer said: Revealing the truth about the origins of the virus is vital to the national security of the United States, and is critical to preventing future epidemics.
Biden priority
In the same vein, Kirby said the investigation “is an entire government effort and not by a single agency.” He added that President Joe Biden has been regularly briefed on what the agencies have found regarding the origins of the coronavirus.
Kirby continued: The President has made trying to find Covid assets a priority since taking office. There is no consensus right now in the US government about exactly how Covid started.
The US official also confirmed that “when the information becomes available, the administration will inform Congress and the American people about it.
Beijing has strongly objected to the hypothesis of the US Department of Energy, and considered that these new accusations “tarnish” its image.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said during her daily statement: We must stop waving this theory of a leakage from a laboratory, stop defaming China, and stop politicizing research related to the origin of the virus.
“Experts from China and the World Health Organization, based on field visits to laboratories in Wuhan and in-depth conversations with researchers, have come to the authoritative conclusion that the option of leakage from the laboratory is highly unlikely,” Ning added.
