We haven’t received $1 from US government: Chinese FM

The spokespersons of China’s Foreign Ministry aimed pointed questions at the US on Friday over the latter’s hypocrisy

Geng Shuang said the US government has provided no funds to support China in the coronavirus battle while touting its share of assistance. He also said the US banished Chinese reporters to hide its public from the truth; and labelling coronavirus “Chinese virus” to pass the buck to China.

Hua Chunying, another spokesperson, tweeted on Thursday that “China has been updating the US on the coronavirus .and its response since Jan. 3. On Jan. 15 the US State Department notified Americans in China of the US CDC’s warning about the coronavirus. And now blame China for the delay? Seriously?”

In another tweet, Hua said that US officials said they offered $100 million to China and other countries. “We thank the American people for their kind help. But as a matter of fact, we haven’t received $1 from the US government. By the way, has the US paid its dues to WHO?”

When asked if Chinese media organizations being cracked down by the US are government-sponsored, while US media organizations sanctioned by the Chinese government are “real media,” Geng said that each country has its own way of managing media operations.

“Why does the US baselessly judge other countries' media from its own ideological point of view, and why does it mislabel and slander Chinese media?” Geng asked.

“China has no intention to change the US political system, but it hopes the US could respect China’s system,” Geng said.

Geng said if the US is a firm believer in its system, and it believes that Western democracy will finally prevail, “why is it afraid of the Communist Party of China and Chinese media?”

Geng said some people in the US have been linking the virus to China and engaging in slander, passing the buck to China, which is total ignorance of the facts.