US President Joseph Biden accused China of concealing "key information about the origin of the coronavirus pandemic", after the publication of a summary of the report of the US intelligence investigation, in which certain ambiguities remained.
The report, classified as top secret, was delivered to Biden on Sunday, who gave intelligence agencies 90 days to redouble their efforts to explain the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.
According to parts of the report released Friday evening, the intelligence services concluded that the coronavirus, whose scientific name is SARS-CoV-2, was not developed as a biological weapon and was probably not genetically modified.
However, the opinion remains divided as to whether the coronavirus was caused by natural exposure, or the result of a "laboratory accident."
"Key information about the origin of the pandemic exists in China, and from the beginning officials there have worked to prevent access by international investigators," the US president said.
Biden added that China continues to reject calls for transparency and conceal information even though the coronavirus pandemic is still present.
The Chinese embassy in Washington immediately reacted on Friday evening and accused the US of political manipulation.
"The US intelligence community report shows that the US is determined to take the wrong path of political manipulation," the Chinese embassy said, adding that the report was based "on the assumption of Chinese guilt, only to make China a scapegoat."
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