Donald Trump threatens tariffs over coronavirus as US and Beijing trade laboratory accusations
- Asked about claim that US could opt to default on debt to China, Trump says he could put on tariffs
- Trump and head of US intelligence suggest Wuhan lab warrants investigation, while Chinese state newspaper asks US to explain bird flu experiment
A Chinese state-run newspaper has demanded the US government disclose information about several virus experiments and its initial response to the coronavirus, while US President Donald Trump threatened to take harsh action against China.
Confirmed cases of infection in the United States have passed 1 million, with more than 63,000 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Globally, the coronavirus has infected about 3.2 million people and caused more than 227,000 fatalities.
During a press conference at the White House, Trump said he had seen evidence that a laboratory in China had been the source of the outbreak, although he refused to elaborate.
“Yes, I have,” Trump said, referring to evidence pointing to the Wuhan Institute of Virology – where the coronavirus has been studied.
When asked about reports that he could decide to default on US debt obligations to China, Trump said he could “do it differently” and act in “probably a little bit more of a forthright manner”. “I could do the same thing but even for more money, just putting on tariffs,” he said.