US seeking coronavirus compensation political farce: China

China says US accusations that Beijing mishandled the coronavirus outbreak have “no factual and legal basis”, adding that seeking compensation for damages caused by the deadly virus is nothing but a political farce.

This came after a number of US states filed a lawsuit against China, arguing that they are suffering huge damages over Beijing’s response to the outbreak.

This week, Missouri’s Attorney General Eric Schmitt and Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch filed a lawsuit in a federal court, alleging that China’s mishandling of the outbreak has led to devastating economic losses for the states.

Schmitt has accused China of lying about the danger and contagious nature of COVID-19, blaming Beijing for making the pandemic worse by "hoarding" personal protective equipment.

Other lawsuits have also been filed in US courts on behalf of business owners, including one in Florida seeking compensation from the Chinese government for coronavirus-related damages on behalf of thousands of people.

In an article published by China Media Group (CMG) on Saturday, Beijing said these lawsuits have been filed in an attempt to cover up Washington's own errors in handling the coronavirus outbreak.

“As the coronavirus situation in the United States becomes increasingly grave, certain people in the country … have begun to seek prosecution against, and compensation from, China out of desperation. Their malicious prosecution and abuse of process, without any legal and factual basis whatsoever, is nothing but a farce reminiscent of the Chinese saying: "A thief shouting thief!,” the article said.

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“Since the outbreak began, a few unscrupulous politicians in Washington, DC have been obsessed with fueling their political interests from the emergency. The idea of putting people's lives first has never crossed their mind. They have been actively engaged in buck passing, while passively fighting the virus and squandering precious windows of opportunities to curb its spread. This irresponsible behavior has resulted in the United States having the highest number of infections in the world,” it added.

“It is the politicians who have undermined public interest with their unethical behavior that should be prosecuted by the international community and American people. Their abuse of process is incompatible with laws, facts and international justice”.

The article also pointed out that the lawsuits have no legal basis and they defy the basic theory of the law.  

“First and foremost, their lawsuits against China were filed without any legal basis. According to the international principle of Sovereign Immunity of State, the state, government and property of a country are not subject to the jurisdiction and enforcement of the courts of another country."

“US courts do not have jurisdiction regarding those lawsuits. Even though the cases were submitted to the International Court of Justice, China can verify that it has already fulfilled its obligations,” it added.

The coronavirus, which causes a respiratory disease known as COVID-19, emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in Hubei Province late last year, incrementally affecting the rest of the world.

The virus has so far infected over 2,832,000 people worldwide, and over 197,300 have died, according to a running count by worldometers.info.

The United States says the virus has so far infected more than 925,000 and killed over 52,000 others.

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China has repeatedly said it “has been nothing but open, transparent and responsible” in informing the World Health Organization (WHO), relevant countries and the US about the pandemic and related information.

Recently, The Washington Post and The New York Times have published several articles reviewing the timeline of the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States, and they have pointed out that it was the administration of US President Donald Trump that led the country to an "error of epic proportions".

Since the coronavirus outbreak, the origin of the virus has been widely discussed online, and conspiracy theories around it have also emerged endlessly.

Previous scientific studies have already suggested that virus, which causes COVID-19, originated through natural processes.

Some analysts say there is increasing evidence that the global coronavirus pandemic is a US biological warfare against other nations.

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