Published 08:35 IST, May 30th 2020
Trump blames China for over 100,000 deaths in US, resounds national interest motto
Mounting another attack on China’s handling of COVID-19 pandemic, Trump blamed the Asian superpower for the death of more than 100,000 Americans.
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Mounting another attack on China’s handling of COVID-19 pandemic, US President Donald Trump blamed the Asian superpower for the death of more than 100,000 Americans as well as "million lives worldwide".
As the number of coronavirus infections in the US mounted to over 1.7 million with 102,798 deaths, Trump alleged that China’s “cover-up” of the novel virus instigated a global health crisis that has infected over 5.9 million people in the world and killed 364,459 people. The US President also said that China "protected itself" against the COVID-19 while the rest of the world had to pay "immense cost of life".
"China's cover-up of the Wuhan virus allowed the disease to spread all over the world, instigating a global pandemic that has cost more than 100,000 American lives and over a million lives worldwide." pic.twitter.com/PoTtCaA1KX
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 29, 2020
Furthermore, Trump not only accused China of not only conducting “illicit espionage” but also of stealing United States' industrial secrets. Building a case for "securing" vital university research, Trump announced that he would be suspending the entry of Chinese graduate to put a dent in the alleged Chinese mission to acquire US trade knowledge. The US President also said that if America continues to allow the entry of such students, it would be “detrimental to the interests of the United States”.
Over and over, China has violated its promises to us and to the world.
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 29, 2020
We want a constructive relationship with China—but America's national interests come first. pic.twitter.com/iUb2q4fVOo
While addressing the Hong Kong issue, Trump said that China has undermined its own promise of ‘One Country, Two Systems’ under which the former British colony was handover for China in 1997. Saying that he is “certainly not happy” with respect to China's move to undermine Hong Kong's autonomy, the US President called Chinese security bill as “tragedy”.
US ‘terminates’ relationship with WHO
Citing the “acts at the behest of China”, Trump even announced the ‘termination’ of United States relationship with the World Health Organisation (WHO). After previously accusing the United Nations health agency to be “China-Centric”, the US President said that the decision of suspending ties with WHO came in the light of China's “total control” over the organisation. According to Trump, the officials in China “ignored” their reporting obligations to the WHO and then pressured the UN health agency to mislead the world over COVID-19.
08:35 IST, May 30th 2020