Beijing: After being cornered for weeks by countries like the United States and other nations over hiding the COVID-19 data from the world, the Chinese state media has finally offered a rare glimpse of the Wuhan lab, which many believe was at the heart of coronavirus conspiracy theories.
State-run CCTV broadcasted the footage of only a few brief shots of the Wuhan's P4 lab, taken through thick glass windows, which is believed to be the first. This lab is designed for highly-dangerous Class 4 pathogens since its inauguration in 2017.
However, no information has been reported on how the lab works.
Two World Health Organization experts will spend the next two days in the Chinese capital to lay the groundwork for a larger mission to investigate the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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One animal health expert and one epidemiologist during their visit to Beijing on Saturday and Sunday will work to fix the scope and terms of reference for the future mission aimed at learning how the virus jumped from animals to humans, the agency's statement said Friday.
Scientists believe the virus may have originated in bats, then was transmitted through another mammal such as a civet cat or an armadillo-like pangolin before being passed on to people at a fresh food market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.
To block future outbreaks, China has cracked down on the trade in wildlife and closed some wet markets, while enforcing strict containment measures that appear to have virtually stopped new local infections.
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Earlier, the US President also lashed out at China for the COVID-19 crisis, accusing Beijing of trying to deflect the pain and carnage that the country spread throughout the world.
In May, Trump had said that he was very disappointed with China over its failure to contain the virus, saying the worldwide pandemic cast a pall over his US-China trade deal. Trump has been targeting China for spreading the virus.
Earlier, the US President was asked at a press conference if he had seen evidence that gave him a high degree of confidence that the virus came from the Wuhan Institute of Virology and replied that he had, although he declined to give specifics.
More than 120 nations called for an investigation into the origins of the virus at the World Health Assembly in May. China has insisted that WHO lead the investigation and for it to wait until the pandemic is brought under control. The US, Brazil and India are continuing to see an increasing number of cases.
However, China has denied covering up the extent of its coronavirus outbreak and accused the US of attempting to divert public attention.
