White House ‘disappointed’ in China’s virus transparency

THE UNITED States feels let down by a lack of transparency from China over the newcoronavirus crisis, a senior White House official said Thursday, contradicting President Donald Trump’s confidence in Beijing.

“We are a little disappointed that we haven’t been invited in and we’re a little disappointed in the lack of transparency coming from the Chinese,” Larry Kudlow, the director of the National Economic Council, told reporters.

Trump on Thursday again praised his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for his government’s response to the outbreak, which has officially killed 1,367 people and infected nearly 60,000 since December.

But Kudlow said that unanswered questions were mounting and there was no sign of the promised cooperation.

“President Xi assured President Trump that China was on it and there would be openness, they would accept our help,” he added.

“We’re more than willing to work with the UN (and) WHO on this and they won’t let us. I don’t know what their motives are. I do know that apparently more and more people are suffering over there.”

“Is the Politburo really being honest with us?” he asked, referring to communist China’s top leadership body.

An international mission led by the World Health Organization is expected to arrive in China over the weekend.