COVID-19: Trump says US doing 'very serious' investigation against China
Washington: The US is carrying out a "very serious" investigation against China, President Donald Trump has said, indicating that his administration is looking at a bigger compensation from Beijing than the USD 140 billion being sought by Germany over the coronavirus pandemic.
The deadly contagion, which originated in China in mid-November, has so far killed more than two lakh people and infected over three million globally. The largest number of them are in the US: more than 56,000 deaths and over one million infections.
Leaders of the US, the UK and Germany increasingly believe that the unfortunate deaths of so many people and destruction of the global economy could have been avoided, if China had shown transparency and shared the information about the virus in its early phases.
Many countries have started talking about claiming compensation from China.
Trump, during the Rose Garden press conference on Monday, was asked about Germany planning to send a bill to China for euro 130 billion (USD 140 billion) for the damages. Would your administration look at doing the same?
Well, we can do something much easier than that. We have ways of doing things a lot easier than that, the President replied.
"Germany is looking at things and we're looking at things and we're talking about a lot more money than Germany is talking about.
We haven't determined the final amount yet, but "it is very substantial," Trump said.
After the US, Europe has been the worst hit by the virus. In India, mainly because of the early and aggressive preventive measures, the fatalities have remained low at 886 and infections at 28,000.
If you look at the world, I mean, this is a worldwide damage. This is a damage to the US but this is a damage to the world, said the President.
Trump said there are "a lot of ways" one can hold China accountable for the spread of the virus. We're doing very serious investigations, as you probably know. We are not happy with China, he said.
We are not happy with that whole situation because we believe it could've been stopped at the source. It could've been stopped quickly and it wouldn't have spread all over the world. And we think that should have happened. So, we'll let you know at the appropriate time, but we are doing serious investigations, Trump said.
In recent weeks, there has been an increasing support towards the move to hold China accountable.
China has been untruthful and unforthcoming since the beginning of this pandemic. We must hold them accountable for this cover up, Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith said in a tweet.
On Monday, Congressman Earl L "Buddy" Carter signed on to a resolution establishing a bicameral, bipartisan joint select committee to investigate the origins of and China's handling of the 2019 novel coronavirus.
"We know China has lied and covered up important information about COVID-19 since the beginning," said Carter.
"Now, thousands of Americans have died, people have lost their jobs and the world has been turned upside down. Congress has the responsibility to investigate the origins of the virus and the extent of China's deception. The American people have been devastated by this disease and they deserve answers. We should approve this resolution without delay and get to work as soon as possible," he said.
In a related development, Congressmen Alex X Mooney and Matt Gaetz, Senator Martha McSally and a bicameral coalition of over 50 other lawmakers sent a letter to House and Senate leadership requesting that no COVID-19 relief funds be given to China's state-run bio-agent laboratory, the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV).
After the damage the coronavirus has inflicted upon the world, US taxpayer dollars should no longer be sent to labs we know conduct sloppy research and dangerous experiments. I commend President Trump's response to this invisible enemy and his determination to hold China accountable for its actions, Mooney said.
Reports indicate that for years WIV has received taxpayer dollars from the US National Institutes of Health for secretive and dangerous laboratory research on coronavirus-infected bats
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Nepal records 18% turnout till noon in first election since govt-toppling Gen Z protests
Kathmandu (PTI): Nepal which went to polls on Thursday, the first since a violent Gen Z protest that toppled the K P Sharma Oli-led government last year, recorded a turnout of about 18 per cent till noon, according to the Election Commission.
The Election Commission said that around 3.16 million people have exercised their franchise till 12 pm, with the voting process going smoothly.
Voting is ongoing smoothly across the country with minor incidents in a very few places, Election Commissioner Sagun Shumsher Rana was quoted as saying by the Kathmandu Post.
More than 18.9 million eligible Nepalese are exercising their franchise to elect the 275-member House of Representatives from among the 3,406 candidates vying for 165 seats under direct voting, and 3,135 candidates vying for 110 seats through proportionate voting.
The voting started at 7 am and will conclude at 5 pm. The counting will start immediately after the ballot boxes are collected.
Nepal Police confirmed that apart from minor disagreements at a few locations, no serious problems had occurred.
Police spokesperson Abi Narayan Kafle said, “Some jostling is expected during elections, but no major issues have arisen. We are ensuring that the voting process remains peaceful throughout the day.”
"Voting started in all the constituencies, including the southern plains, hilly area and the mountain region at 7 am," Election Commission spokesperson Narayan Prasad Bhattarai said.
“The election started in a peaceful environment across the country,” he added.
ALSO READ: Nepal records over 10% turnout till 11 am in first election since govt-toppling Gen Z protests
Addressing a press meet here on the eve of the polls, Acting Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari on Wednesday had said that all preparations for the election had been completed and urged voters to participate actively and enthusiastically in the democratic exercise.
In Kathmandu, the weather was fine, sky was clear and people were enthusiastically queuing up to cast their votes.
Interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki cast her vote from Kathmandu-5 constituency at Dhapasi on the outskirts of Kathmandu on Thursday morning.
"I have cast my vote, I am happy that people are casting their votes, participating in the general election," she said.
Nepali Congress president Gagan Thapa cast his vote from Kathmandu-4 constituency in Maitidevi in the morning.
"This election was needed to bring the Constitution back on the right track," he said.
Thapa, the prime ministerial candidate of Nepali Congress, is contesting the election from Dhanusha-4 constituency.
Rastriya Swotantra Party (RSP) president Ravi Lamichhane cast his vote from Chuchepati area on the outskirts of Kathmandu.
Prime ministerial candidate of RSP and former Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah ‘Balen’ cast his vote from Gairegaun, Kathmandu. He is contesting the election from Jhapa-5.
Ousted premier Oli cast his vote from Balkot in Bhaktapur district.
The Gen Z youth, through their two-day intensified protests on September 8 and 9, ousted Prime Minister Oli, chair of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) -- CPN-UML -- who was heading a coalition government with the backing of Nepali Congress that enjoyed nearly two-thirds majority support.
The CPN-UML, led by ousted PM Oli, has emerged as the hardliner force. Though former premier Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'-led NCP claims to have addressed the issues raised by the Gen Z, they have not handed over the party leadership to the younger generation.
Rastriya Swotantra Party (RSP), led by its chair Ravi Lamichhane and senior leader Balendra Shah, and the reformed Nepali Congress, led by Gagan Thapa, are voicing the issues raised by the Gen Z, while CPN-UML and Nepali Communist Party, led by ‘Prachanda’, are known as the traditional forces.
Ujyalo Nepal Party, led by Kulman Ghising, and Shram Shakti Party, led by former Dharan Mayor Harka Sampang, are also emerging forces but enjoy support in limited pockets only.
After Oli's ouster, President Ramchandra Paudel dissolved the House of Representatives on September 12 and appointed Sushila Karki as the caretaker PM.
The major issues raised by Gen Z are anti-corruption, good governance, an end to nepotism, generational change in political leadership, etc.
Starting Wednesday, Nepal has declared a three-day holiday for the polls.
There are a total of 10,967 polling booths and 23,112 polling centres, the Election Commission data showed. As many as 65 political parties are taking part in the election.
