184 countries 'going through hell' as China failed to stop coronavirus: Trump

Washington: The US has once again mounted a scathing attack on China over the Coronavirus pandemic. Continuing the blame-game, President Donald Trump called out China for failing to tame the coronavirus at its very origin, saying it has led to 184 countries “going through hell”. Trump’s statement also came as several American lawmakers demanded steps to reduce dependence on Beijing for manufacturing and minerals.

“It’s in 184 countries, as you hear me say often. It’s hard to believe. It’s inconceivable,” Trump told reporters at White House Tuesday. “It should have been stopped at the source, which was China. It should have been stopped very much at the source, but it wasn’t. And now we have 184 countries going through hell,” Trump added.

Prior to this recent attack, the US targeted China for its COVID-19 response and said that it has launched a “very serious investigation” into it.

“We are not happy with China, we are not happy with that whole situation, because we believe it could have been stopped at the source,” Trump said, adding, “It could have been stopped quickly and it wouldn’t have spread all over the world. So, we’ll let you know at the appropriate time, but we are doing serious investigations.”

Notably, the virus, which originated in China’s Wuhan city in mid-November, has killed more than two lakh people and infected over three million globally. The largest number of them are in the US: nearly 59,000 deaths and over one million infections.