Coronavirus: Trump to look into legislation proposing to sanctions on China

US President Donald Trump has said that he will look into legislation introduced in Senate a day earlier that proposes sanctions on China if it fails to cooperate and provide a full accounting of events leing up to vel coronavirus outbreak. coronavirus, which first emerged in China's Wuhan city last year, has claimed nearly 3,00,000 lives and infected over 4.3 million people across world so far. US alone has recorded close to 85,000 COVID-19 deaths.

"I will certainly look at it ( legislation), y build to sanction China so I will certainly take a look at it. I have t seen it yet," Trump told reporters on Wednesday.

legislation was introduced by Senator Lindsey Graham and eight or senators on Tuesday. COVID-19 Accountability Act mandates president to make a certification to Congress within 60 days that China has provided a full and complete accounting to any COVID-19 investigation led by US, its allies or UN affiliates such as World Health Organization and has closed all operating wet markets that have potential to expose humans to health risks through introduction of zootic disease into human population.

Without certification, president would be authorised to impose a range of sanctions such as asset freezes, travel bans, visa revocations, restricting United States financial institutions from making loans or underwritings to Chinese businesses and prohibiting Chinese firms from being listed on American stock exchanges.

Following Senate legislation, Congressman Doug Collins on Wednesday introduced COVID-19 Accountability Act to hold China accountable for creating a global pandemic by giving president authority to impose sanctions on China if y fail to cooperate. legislation is co-sponsored by more than two dozen lawmakers.

"While Chinese Communist regime has inflicted harm on US for deces, coronavirus outbreak has shined a light on urgent need to change course," said Collins.

" Chinese Communist regime's coverup of coronavirus outbreak cost hundreds of thousands of lives worldwide and caused unfathomable harm to global ecomy, and y must be held accountable. By giving president authority to impose a wide range of sanctions on Chinese officials, COVID-19 Accountability Act will guarantee China is held fully accountable for worldwide devastation y've caused and will ensure American people get answers y deserve," he said.

Meanwhile, Congressman Max Rose, Chair of Homeland Security Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism, and Congressman Mark Walker, a ranking member of subcommittee, urged Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A) to focus on China and provide subcommittee with details of its intelligence assessments on China's actions related to pandemic.

"While coronavirus pandemic travelled world and devastated my district, China continues to hide critical information for ir own benefit," Rose said.

" Communist Chinese Government cant be trusted, but I trust our intelligence community can help us get facts in order to help us beat this pandemic and save lives," he said.

"China's blatant disregard for humanity during coronavirus pandemic has endangered lives of Americans in rth Carolina's sixth district and across this nation," Walker said.

"Eugh is eugh. I urge Department of Homeland Security Office of Intelligence and Analysis to fully investigate se atrocities and get to bottom of China's apparent malpractice," he ded.

Even amidst coronavirus pandemic, Chinese government and Communist Party's efforts to steal intellectual property and tre secrets from American companies remains an ongoing threat, Senator Marco Rubio said.

"justing to new reality caused by pandemic, Beijing has shifted its recruitment efforts for Thousand Talents Program online, and it has increased efforts to hack US medical research institutes for COVID-19 information. Policymakers at every level of US government, as well as private sector, must be clear-eyed about this threat and work diligently to protect against it," Rubio said.

A day earlier, Senator Rick Scott sent a letter to US stock exchanges, major pension plans and underwriters urging m to review ir policies and discontinue coordination with US-listed Chinese-based companies considering growing threat of Communist China.

Separately Congresswoman Jackie Walorski called for select subcommittee on coronavirus crisis to focus on safely getting America back to work and holding China accountable, rar than conducting partisan investigations and scoring political points.

During panel's first public hearing, Walorski highlighted questions about China's actions surrounding coronavirus pandemic that have gone unanswered even as Democrats in subcommittee's first official action sent harassing letters to American businesses trying to save jobs.

A senior State Department official travelling with Secretary of State told reporters in Germany that COVID-19 highlights dangers of dealing with states that are t transparent, that don't have fair tre practices, that lever tre get certain outcomes from ir tre partners.

"Aside from sort of debt traps that we're seeing, we've seen in Djibouti, elsewhere, right, where you have to give China a 99-year lease on a port -- to or states. So a region where y're really in debt and it's causing major issues with ecomy,” official said.

"But in particular re's issue of strategic investment, that re is such thing as a privately owned, independent company in China, right. If you use (Chinese techlogy company) Huawei, if you use any of company that has access to your DNA, that DNA becomes property and that information becomes property of Chinese Communist Party. And so that's a security issue,” official said.