China&nbsp;hit out at the "dark history" of the US intelligence community Thursday after President Joe Biden ordered a probe into the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus">COVID-19</a> origins which threaten to set the course for relations between the world's top economies.

Washington is reviewing its diplomatic position with&nbsp;China&nbsp;on issues spanning trade, technological supremacy and rights, while it steps up efforts to hook Western democracies into a united diplomatic front against perceived Chinese aggression.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/top-china-us-trade-officials-hold-candid-first-talks-387755">Top China, US trade officials hold 'candid' first talks</a>

The countries' trade envoys have held "candid" phone talks on the progress of a deal plotted as a pathway out of a trade war sparked by former President Donald Trump, which saw tariffs lumped on tens of billions of dollars of the rivals' goods.

But on Wednesday, President Biden reopened a barely healed sore between the countries by ordering US intelligence agencies to report to him within 90 days on whether the COVID-19 virus first emerged in&nbsp;China&nbsp;from an animal source or from a laboratory accident.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/president-biden-orders-us-intelligence-to-redouble-efforts-to-collect-information-on-covid-19-origin-387626">President Biden orders US intelligence to 'redouble efforts' to collect information on COVID-19 origin</a>

The lab-leak theory, initially trotted out by Trump then dismissed as "highly unlikely" by a delayed World Health Organization mission to&nbsp;China, has resurfaced in recent days, driven by Washington.

China&nbsp;is intensely sensitive to allegations it could have done more to stop the spread of a pandemic that has gone on to kill well over 3.4 million people and has eviscerated economies since emerging in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019.

Beijing rejects the theory the virus may have emerged from a virology lab in Wuhan and has instead accused the US of peddling "conspiracies" and politicising the pandemic.&nbsp;

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The Biden administration's "motive and purposes are clear", Zhao Lijian a ministry of foreign affairs spokesman said on Thursday, rejecting the need for a new investigation into the pandemic.

"The dark history of the US intelligence community has long been known to the world," he added, referring to the US' unfounded allegations of weapons of mass destruction that led to its invasion of Iraq.

Reviving the lab leak theory "is disrespectful to science... and also a disruption to the global fight against the pandemic", Zhao said.

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But the idea of virus release from a Wuhan lab is gaining increasing traction in the United States.

Citing a US intelligence report, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that a trio from the Wuhan Institute of Virology was hospitalised with a seasonal illness in November 2019, a month before Beijing disclosed the existence of a mysterious pneumonia outbreak.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/covid-lab-origin-theory-gains-traction-in-united-states-387436">Covid lab origin theory gains traction in United States</a>&nbsp;

The natural origin hypothesis, backed as the most likely by the WHO expert team who visited&nbsp;China, holds that the virus emerged in bats then passed to humans, likely via an intermediary species.

This theory was widely accepted at the start of the pandemic, but as time has worn on, scientists have not found a virus in either bats or another animal that matches the genetic signature of SARS-CoV-2.

Trade talks

China&nbsp;is at pains to move on from the pandemic origin quest, driven by Western nations including Australia and the UK.

Instead, it is focused on its economic rebound since squashing the pandemic inside its borders.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/opinions-blogs/us-china-trade-deal-what-were-the-key-issues-and-are-they-resolved-275073">US China trade deal: What were the key issues and are they resolved?</a>

The commerce ministry on Thursday welcomed trade talks with Washington which are part of a deal to end the bruising trade war.

The two countries signed the so-called "phase 1" agreement in January 2020, in which Beijing pledged to increase its purchases of American products and services by at least $200 billion over 2020 and 2021.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/amid-pandemic-us-china-agree-to-push-forward-phase-one-trade-deal-322902">Amid pandemic, US, China agree to 'push forward' phase one trade deal</a>

But top US trade negotiator Katherine Tai has said she is analysing whether the terms of that pact have been met by&nbsp;China, with some experts saying Beijing is falling up to 40 per cent short on its agreement to buy US goods.

The talks were the first between top trade envoys since Biden came to office and are significant given previous high-level contacts, including a face-to-face meeting of foreign envoys in Alaska, have collapsed in acrimony.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-taiwan-sign-first-agreement-under-biden-administration-after-china-law-373392">US, Taiwan sign first agreement under Biden administration after China law</a>

But the trade discussions are a matter of "diplomatic protocol more than about re-engagement" says Alex Capri, Research Fellow, Hinrich Foundation.

Despite Biden's less hawkish language, the US-China&nbsp;relationship &nbsp;appears on the "same trajectory as his predecessor", says Capri of "systemic rivalry, defined by techno-nationalist and neo-mercantilist competition."

China hit out at the "dark history" of the US intelligence community Thursday after President Joe Biden ordered a probe into the COVID-19 origins which threaten to set the course for relations between the world's top economies.

China hit out at the "dark history" of the US intelligence community Thursday after President Joe Biden ordered a probe into the COVID-19 origins which threaten to set the course for relations between the world's top economies. Washington is reviewing its diplomatic position with China on issues spanning trade, technological supremacy and rights, while it steps up efforts to hook Western democracies into a united diplomatic front against perceived Chinese aggression. Also Read | Top China, US trade officials hold 'candid' first talks The countries' trade envoys have held "candid" phone talks on the progress of a deal plotted as a pathway out of a trade war sparked by former President Donald Trump, which saw tariffs lumped on tens of billions of dollars of the rivals' goods. But on Wednesday, President Biden reopened a barely healed sore between the countries by ordering US intelligence agencies to report to him within 90 days on whether the COVID-19 virus first emerged in China from an animal source or from a laboratory accident. Also Read | President Biden orders US intelligence to 'redouble efforts' to collect information on COVID-19 origin The lab-leak theory, initially trotted out by Trump then dismissed as "highly unlikely" by a delayed World Health Organization mission to China, has resurfaced in recent days, driven by Washington. China is intensely sensitive to allegations it could have done more to stop the spread of a pandemic that has gone on to kill well over 3.4 million people and has eviscerated economies since emerging in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019. Beijing rejects the theory the virus may have emerged from a virology lab in Wuhan and has instead accused the US of peddling "conspiracies" and politicising the pandemic. The Biden administration's "motive and purposes are clear", Zhao Lijian a ministry of foreign affairs spokesman said on Thursday, rejecting the need for a new investigation into the pandemic. "The dark history of the US intelligence community has long been known to the world," he added, referring to the US' unfounded allegations of weapons of mass destruction that led to its invasion of Iraq. Reviving the lab leak theory "is disrespectful to science... and also a disruption to the global fight against the pandemic", Zhao said. But the idea of virus release from a Wuhan lab is gaining increasing traction in the United States. Citing a US intelligence report, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that a trio from the Wuhan Institute of Virology was hospitalised with a seasonal illness in November 2019, a month before Beijing disclosed the existence of a mysterious pneumonia outbreak. Also Read | Covid lab origin theory gains traction in United States The natural origin hypothesis, backed as the most likely by the WHO expert team who visited China, holds that the virus emerged in bats then passed to humans, likely via an intermediary species. This theory was widely accepted at the start of the pandemic, but as time has worn on, scientists have not found a virus in either bats or another animal that matches the genetic signature of SARS-CoV-2. Trade talks China is at pains to move on from the pandemic origin quest, driven by Western nations including Australia and the UK. Instead, it is focused on its economic rebound since squashing the pandemic inside its borders. Also Read | US China trade deal: What were the key issues and are they resolved? The commerce ministry on Thursday welcomed trade talks with Washington which are part of a deal to end the bruising trade war. The two countries signed the so-called "phase 1" agreement in January 2020, in which Beijing pledged to increase its purchases of American products and services by at least $200 billion over 2020 and 2021. Also Read | Amid pandemic, US, China agree to 'push forward' phase one trade deal But top US trade negotiator Katherine Tai has said she is analysing whether the terms of that pact have been met by China, with some experts saying Beijing is falling up to 40 per cent short on its agreement to buy US goods. The talks were the first between top trade envoys since Biden came to office and are significant given previous high-level contacts, including a face-to-face meeting of foreign envoys in Alaska, have collapsed in acrimony. Also Read | US, Taiwan sign first agreement under Biden administration after China law But the trade discussions are a matter of "diplomatic protocol more than about re-engagement" says Alex Capri, Research Fellow, Hinrich Foundation. Despite Biden's less hawkish language, the US-China relationship appears on the "same trajectory as his predecessor", says Capri of "systemic rivalry, defined by techno-nationalist and neo-mercantilist competition."

China rails at Biden intelligence probe into virus origins

US President Joe Biden in a statement on Wednesday said that the "failure to get our inspectors on the ground in those early months will always hamper any investigation into the origin of <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/fauci-admits-wuhan-lab-received-modest-funds-from-us-amid-calls-for-probe-into-covid-origins-387497">COVID-19</a>."

Watch:

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The US president revealed that he had called&nbsp;the CDC earlier when the reports first emerged about the virus "to get access to China to learn about the virus so we could fight it more effectively."

"As of today, the US intelligence community has coalesced around two likely scenarios", Biden said, "but has not reached a definite conclusion on the question."

"Here is the current position - while two elements in the intelligence report leans&nbsp;towards the former scenario and the one leans more towards the latter - each with low or moderate confidence - the majority of elements do not believe there is sufficient information to assess one to be likely than the other."

"I have asked the intelligence community to redouble their efforts to collect and analyse information that could bring us closer to a definite conclusion and to report back to be me in 90 days," the US President said.

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Read the full statement by President Joe Biden on the investigation into the origins of COVID-19: <a href="https://t.co/Lo4Y2g0IKQ">pic.twitter.com/Lo4Y2g0IKQ</a>
— National Security Council (@WHNSC) <a href="https://twitter.com/WHNSC/status/1397597235450425346?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 26, 2021</a></blockquote>
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"As part of that report, I have asked for areas of further inquiry that may be required including specific questions on China," the president added.

"I have also asked that his effort include work by our national labs and other agencies of our government to augment the intelligence community's efforts," he said.

The president said that he has also asked the intelligence community to keep Congress fully appraised of its work.

Earlier on Wednesday, after the US demanded a "transparent, science-based" probe into the origin of coronavirus, the Chinese foreign ministry said that "the United States continues to hype up the lab leak theory".

"The Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences issued a relevant statement on March 23 this year," the Chinese foreign ministry asserted while adding that, "before December 30, 2019, coronavirus was not contracted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Until now, there has been zero infection of staff and post-graduate students at the institute."

The lab leak theory gathered pace after a report claimed that US intelligence agencies had revealed that researchers at China's virology laboratory had fallen ill in 2019 before Chinese authorities reported the case to the WHO.&nbsp;

China's foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said that the US was "spreading conspiracy theories and disinformation such as a laboratory leak". 
&nbsp;

US President Joe Biden in a statement on Wednesday said that the "failure to get our inspectors on the ground in those early months will always hamper any investigation into the origin of COVID-19.

US President Joe Biden in a statement on Wednesday said that the "failure to get our inspectors on the ground in those early months will always hamper any investigation into the origin of COVID-19." Watch: The US president revealed that he had called the CDC earlier when the reports first emerged about the virus "to get access to China to learn about the virus so we could fight it more effectively." "As of today, the US intelligence community has coalesced around two likely scenarios", Biden said, "but has not reached a definite conclusion on the question." "Here is the current position - while two elements in the intelligence report leans towards the former scenario and the one leans more towards the latter - each with low or moderate confidence - the majority of elements do not believe there is sufficient information to assess one to be likely than the other." "I have asked the intelligence community to redouble their efforts to collect and analyse information that could bring us closer to a definite conclusion and to report back to be me in 90 days," the US President said. Read the full statement by President Joe Biden on the investigation into the origins of COVID-19: pic.twitter.com/Lo4Y2g0IKQ — National Security Council (@WHNSC) May 26, 2021 × "As part of that report, I have asked for areas of further inquiry that may be required including specific questions on China," the president added. "I have also asked that his effort include work by our national labs and other agencies of our government to augment the intelligence community's efforts," he said. The president said that he has also asked the intelligence community to keep Congress fully appraised of its work. Earlier on Wednesday, after the US demanded a "transparent, science-based" probe into the origin of coronavirus, the Chinese foreign ministry said that "the United States continues to hype up the lab leak theory". "The Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences issued a relevant statement on March 23 this year," the Chinese foreign ministry asserted while adding that, "before December 30, 2019, coronavirus was not contracted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Until now, there has been zero infection of staff and post-graduate students at the institute." The lab leak theory gathered pace after a report claimed that US intelligence agencies had revealed that researchers at China's virology laboratory had fallen ill in 2019 before Chinese authorities reported the case to the WHO. China's foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said that the US was "spreading conspiracy theories and disinformation such as a laboratory leak".

President Biden orders US intelligence to 'redouble efforts' to collect information on COVID-19 origin

The Chinese laboratory accused by top American officials of being the source of the coronavirus pandemic researches the world's most dangerous diseases. 
 
<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-secretary-of-state-pompeo-says-enormous-evidence-virus-came-from-wuhan-lab-296446">Also read: US Secretary of State Pompeo says 'enormous evidence' virus came from Wuhan lab</a> 
 
US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have both claimed that there is evidence the pathogen came from the lab in Wuhan — the city where the disease was first detected late last year.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/china-lashes-out-at-pompeo-calls-his-coronavirus-origin-theory-insane-296778">Also read: China lashes out at Pompeo, calls his coronavirus origin theory 'insane'</a> 
 
But the World Health Organization said Washington had offered no evidence to support the "speculative" claims, and scientists believe the coronavirus jumped from animals to humans, possibly at a Wuhan market selling wild animals.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/intel-shared-among-us-allies-contradicts-trumps-claims-says-coronavirus-outbreak-more-likely-came-from-market-296696" hreflang="en">Intel shared among US allies contradicts Trump's claims, says coronavirus outbreak more likely came from market</a>

The top US epidemiologist Anthony Fauci has echoed the WHO's statement, telling National Geographic that all evidence so far "strongly indicates" a natural origin.

China has strongly denied the allegations, but speculation and conspiracy theories have persisted.

Here are some key questions about the Wuhan Institute of Virology:

What do its researchers do?

Work by the lab's scientists helped to shed light on the COVID-19 pathogen in the early days of the outbreak in Wuhan.

In February, they published work concluding that the new virus shared a 79.6 per cent sequence identity to the SARS coronavirus and that it was 96 per cent identical at the whole-genome level to a coronavirus found in bats.

The lab's researchers had already conducted extensive investigations on the links between bats and disease outbreaks in China and had highlighted the need to prepare for viruses potentially spreading out of their natural reservoirs into human communities.

Scientists think COVID-19 originated in bats and could have been transmitted to people via another mammal like a pangolin, but there is no definitive answer so far.

What does it handle?

The Wuhan institute houses the largest virus bank in Asia which preserves more than 1,500 strains.

The complex contains Asia's first maximum-security lab equipped to handle Class 4 pathogens (P4) such as Ebola.

The 300-million-yuan ($42 million) P4 lab opened in 2018. A P3 lab has been in operation since 2012.

While the US intelligence community said it had concluded the coronavirus was not human-made, it added that it would continue to investigate if the outbreak started from contact with infected animals or from "an accident" at the Wuhan lab.

Could there be a leak?

US diplomatic cables seen by The Washington Post earlier said that officials were concerned about inadequate safety standards related to researchers' handling of SARS-like bat coronaviruses in the high-security lab.

The institute has said it received samples of the then-unknown virus on December 30, determined the viral genome sequence on January 2 and submitted information on the pathogen to the WHO on January 11.

Shi Zhengli, one of China's leading experts on bat coronaviruses and deputy director of the Wuhan P4 lab, said she would "bet her life that (the new coronavirus) had nothing to do with the lab", according to Chinese state media.

And in an interview with Scientific American, Shi said the SARS-CoV-2 genome sequence did not match any of the bat coronaviruses her laboratory had previously collected and studied.

What do scientists know about the virus?

Researchers have noted that while there is no proof for the lab accident theory, there is also no clear evidence that the virus came from the Wuhan market.

A study by a group of Chinese scientists published in The Lancet in January found that the first COVID-19 patient had no connection to the market, and neither did 13 of the first 41 confirmed cases.

Professor Leo Poon of The University of Hong Kong said the scientific community's consensus was that the virus is not human-made.

"We need to look at the origin of this virus. It is important because, from a public health point of view, we want to know how it happened, and (if we can) learn from this," he said.

David Heymann, professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, added: "We have a hypothesis that it came from a live animal market, and I haven't seen anybody provide evidence that shows to the contrary."

The Chinese laboratory accused by top American officials of being the source of the coronavirus pandemic researches the world's most dangerous diseases. Also read: US Secretary of State Pompeo says 'enormous evidence' virus came from Wuhan lab US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have both claimed that there is evidence the pathogen came from the lab in Wuhan — the city where the disease was first detected late last year.

The Chinese laboratory accused by top American officials of being the source of the coronavirus pandemic researches the world's most dangerous diseases. Also read: US Secretary of State Pompeo says 'enormous evidence' virus came from Wuhan lab US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have both claimed that there is evidence the pathogen came from the lab in Wuhan — the city where the disease was first detected late last year. Also read: China lashes out at Pompeo, calls his coronavirus origin theory 'insane' But the World Health Organization said Washington had offered no evidence to support the "speculative" claims, and scientists believe the coronavirus jumped from animals to humans, possibly at a Wuhan market selling wild animals. Also read: Intel shared among US allies contradicts Trump's claims, says coronavirus outbreak more likely came from market The top US epidemiologist Anthony Fauci has echoed the WHO's statement, telling National Geographic that all evidence so far "strongly indicates" a natural origin. China has strongly denied the allegations, but speculation and conspiracy theories have persisted. Here are some key questions about the Wuhan Institute of Virology: What do its researchers do? Work by the lab's scientists helped to shed light on the COVID-19 pathogen in the early days of the outbreak in Wuhan. In February, they published work concluding that the new virus shared a 79.6 per cent sequence identity to the SARS coronavirus and that it was 96 per cent identical at the whole-genome level to a coronavirus found in bats. The lab's researchers had already conducted extensive investigations on the links between bats and disease outbreaks in China and had highlighted the need to prepare for viruses potentially spreading out of their natural reservoirs into human communities. Scientists think COVID-19 originated in bats and could have been transmitted to people via another mammal like a pangolin, but there is no definitive answer so far. What does it handle? The Wuhan institute houses the largest virus bank in Asia which preserves more than 1,500 strains. The complex contains Asia's first maximum-security lab equipped to handle Class 4 pathogens (P4) such as Ebola. The 300-million-yuan ($42 million) P4 lab opened in 2018. A P3 lab has been in operation since 2012. While the US intelligence community said it had concluded the coronavirus was not human-made, it added that it would continue to investigate if the outbreak started from contact with infected animals or from "an accident" at the Wuhan lab. Could there be a leak? US diplomatic cables seen by The Washington Post earlier said that officials were concerned about inadequate safety standards related to researchers' handling of SARS-like bat coronaviruses in the high-security lab. The institute has said it received samples of the then-unknown virus on December 30, determined the viral genome sequence on January 2 and submitted information on the pathogen to the WHO on January 11. Shi Zhengli, one of China's leading experts on bat coronaviruses and deputy director of the Wuhan P4 lab, said she would "bet her life that (the new coronavirus) had nothing to do with the lab", according to Chinese state media. And in an interview with Scientific American, Shi said the SARS-CoV-2 genome sequence did not match any of the bat coronaviruses her laboratory had previously collected and studied. What do scientists know about the virus? Researchers have noted that while there is no proof for the lab accident theory, there is also no clear evidence that the virus came from the Wuhan market. A study by a group of Chinese scientists published in The Lancet in January found that the first COVID-19 patient had no connection to the market, and neither did 13 of the first 41 confirmed cases. Professor Leo Poon of The University of Hong Kong said the scientific community's consensus was that the virus is not human-made. "We need to look at the origin of this virus. It is important because, from a public health point of view, we want to know how it happened, and (if we can) learn from this," he said. David Heymann, professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, added: "We have a hypothesis that it came from a live animal market, and I haven't seen anybody provide evidence that shows to the contrary."

China's Wuhan laboratory at the heart of the Washington-Beijing virus spat