US President Donald Trump has launched another scathing attack on China, announcing that the federal government was “conducting serious investigations” into the way the Chinese handled the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, going as far as to suggest that the US could seek damages.
Trump had apparently agreed to stop his daily press briefing, a decision which according to media reports in the US was taken after his advisers warned him that the long-winding briefings, including comments ridiculed around the world about disinfectant, were damaging his reputation further and hurting his re-election campaign.
However, it seems that the President’s love of press briefings eventually emerged victorious and after the White House had announced that today’s session was briefing, a few hours later the decision was reversed. Trump used today’s presser to launch another strongly-worded attack on China, suggesting that there were “a lot of ways you can hold them accountable” for the pandemic.
“We are not happy with China”, Trump pushed on. “We believe it could have been stopped at the source. It could have been stopped quickly and it wouldn’t have spread all over the world.” Questioned about what potential damages could the country be expected to request, Trump dribbled the journalist with a vague statement: “We haven’t determined the final amount yet,” Trump said. “It’s very substantial.”
Earlier today, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro accused China of profiteering from the pandemic by selling fake and counterfeit tests to countries such as the US.
Read more via The Guardian
