Jiang Qiming/China News Service via Getty Images
- A report from three Chinese think tanks called "America Ranked First?!': The Truth about America's fight against Covid-19" detailed US failings in the pandemic.
- It called the US a "failed country," a "country where the virus spreads," and "suspected source of the outbreak."
- The report also reignited the baseless theory that the virus may have spread from a lab in the US.
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Three Chinese think tanks published a report on how the US has faltered in its coronavirus pandemic response, calling the US a "failed country," a "country where the virus spreads," and a "suspected source of the outbreak."
The report "America Ranked First?!': The Truth about America's fight against Covid-19" was released on Monday. Three Chinese think tanks – Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at the Renmin University of China, Taihe Institute, and Intellisia Institute – contributed to the report.
The institutions took issue with Bloomberg naming the US the best place to be during the pandemic in its COVID Resilience Index in June.
Bloomberg's COVID Resilience Index ranks 53 major economies each month on how they're handling the virus and the level of social and economic disruption caused by the pandemic.
In June, the US topped the list for its speedy vaccination rollout and the loosening of restrictions. But in July, the US fell from the top spot to fifth, as the Delta variant spread in the country.
"In the face of stark reality, some US media have rated the United States as the 'world's first' in its response to the pandemic," the report's authors said, adding "some US media are ignoring the basic fact that the US is number one in the world in terms of the number of cases and deaths from the pandemic."
The report mainly referenced US media - including The New York Times, Washington Post, and CNN - in its analysis of the country's response to the pandemic. It outlined ways the US had failed in the pandemic response, pointing to widening wealth disparity, systemic racism, and failures in gun control.
In addition, it called on the US to investigate the origins of COVID-19 "virus origin tracing terrorism." The authors said tracing the origin of the COVID-19 virus "puts the presumption of guilt against other countries," and is an attempt to manipulate "global public opinion.
The authors also reignited the theory that the COVID-19 virus may have emerged from a biological defense research center in Fort Detrick, Maryland. The lab was shuttered in August 2019 over safety concerns, reported The New York Times.
The authors asked: "What secrets are covered up that they are afraid of the world to know in Fort Detrick? What is the US government hiding?"
The lab became a key target as early as May 2020 as China spun its own lab leak theory to refute theories that the virus may have emerged from a Wuhan virology lab in central China.
Chinese foreign ministry spokespersons have repeatedly called for an investigation into the US lab. There was also a recent petition signed by 25 million Chinese internet users, calling for the World Health Organization to investigate, reported the Chinese tabloid the Global Times.