By Gwurld4026 
China’s Stance on COVID-19 Origins: Lab Leak Theory Rejected
China has dismissed recent claims suggesting that COVID-19 originated from a laboratory leak, labeling such assertions as “extremely unlikely.” This response comes after the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) updated its assessment, now considering a lab-related origin as “more likely,” albeit with “low confidence.”
The Chinese government has consistently maintained that the virus emerged naturally, likely through zoonotic transmission from animals to humans. In response to the CIA’s revised stance, Chinese officials have reiterated their position, emphasizing that multiple studies support a natural origin and accusing the U.S. of politicizing the pandemic’s origins.
The World Health Organization (WHO) conducted an investigation into the origins of COVID-19 and, in a 2021 report, concluded that a laboratory incident was “extremely unlikely” as the source of the virus. The report favored the theory of natural transmission, possibly through an intermediate host species.
Despite these findings, the origins of COVID-19 remain a topic of debate within the international community. Some U.S. intelligence agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), have previously suggested that a lab leak is a plausible scenario, though these assessments are also made with low confidence.