The US Department of Energy now says according to media reports that a leak in a Chinese laboratory caused the coronavirus pandemic, although the White House said on Sunday that US intelligence is divided on the issue.
The determination — noted in a classified report by The Wall Street Journal, director of the Office of National Intelligence Avril Haines — marks a turnaround by the Energy Department, which previously said it was undecided on how the virus emerged.
People who read the classified report were quoted in the Journal and The New York Times as saying the department made its decision with “low confidence” in how different agencies are handling Covid-19. are divided on the origin and worldwide spread of the pandemic. Beginning of 2020.
The findings, reportedly the result of new intelligence, are significant nonetheless because the department oversees a network of national laboratories, including some that conduct advanced biological research.
The department has now joined the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the belief that the pandemic, which has killed nearly seven million people, was the result of an accident in a Chinese laboratory.
Four US intelligence agencies believe Covid occurred through natural transmission, while two others are undecided, the Journal reported.
White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan emphasized the “different views” on the matter.
“Right now, there is no definitive answer from the intelligence community on this question,” he told CNN on Sunday.
In mid-February, the World Health Organization pledged to do everything possible “until we get answers” on the origins of Covid, after denying a report suggesting the agency was dropping its investigation.
The scientific community considers it important to determine the origin of the pandemic in order to better fight or prevent the next one.
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