China calls for next-phase origin tracing in various regions, countries

China's State Council Information Office held a news conference on origin-tracing of the COVID-19 virus on Thursday.

File photo

Here are the highlights:

- China allowed WHO experts to visit all places they wanted to go and meet all people they wanted to see, said Zeng Yixin, vice-minister of the National Health Commission.

- The results of the WHO-China joint study are able to stand the test of time, said Zeng Yixin, vice-minister of the National Health Commission.

- WHO plan to focus on lab leak shows disrespect to common sense and arrogance to science, said Zeng Yixin, vice-minister of the National Health Commission.

- China cannot accept the current version of the second phase investigation into the origins of the COVID-19 virus launched by the World Health Organization, for the plan has been compromised by political manipulation and disrespect of scientific facts, said Zeng Yixin, vice-minister of the National Health Commission.

- Vice-minister Zeng Yixin rejects Wuhan institute had 3 infected workers, carried out gain-of-function research and engineered virus.

- There was zero infection among staff and students at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, said Yuan Zhiming, director of the National Biosafety Laboratory.

- Study on the origin of COVID-19 virus on animals should be the focus of next phase and it should be carried out in countries and regions with bat distribution, said Liang Wannian, team leader of the Chinese side of the joint expert team of WHO-convened Global Study of Origins of SARS-CoV-2.

- Evidence showed the possibility of the virus transmission through cold chain, said Wang Chen, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

- The region that reports the earliest cases is not necessarily where the virus jumped from animals to humans, said Liang Wannian, team leader of the Chinese side of the joint expert team of WHO-convened Global Study of Origins of SARS-CoV-2.

- Only by conducting science-based origin-tracing of COVID-19 virus, can we uncover the real truth, said Xu Nanping, vice-minister of Science and Technology.