China is planning retaliation measures to punish the US politicians who blame the coronavirus pandemic on Beijing, state media reveals

  • Congressmen who support 'anti-China' motions will be penalised, a report said
  • The states that sued China over its virus response will allegedly be punished too
  • Came as US President Trump called COVID-19 'the plague from China' in a tweet
  • The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs declined to comment on the alleged plan
China is planning 'necessary' retaliation measures to punish the American politicians who have accused Beijing of covering up its coronavirus outbreak, according to Chinese state media.
The punitive penalties will also be given to Missouri and 'other US individuals and entities' that have sued China over its perceived mishandling of the health crisis, reported the Global Times citing insiders. 
The news came after US President Donald Trump billed COVID-19 as 'the plague from China' in a tweet that's bound to draw ire from Beijing.
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs declined to comment on Beijing's reported reprisal plan against Washington. 
Chinese state-run newspaper the Global Times claimed that Beijing was drawing a plan of retaliation against the US after some American politicians and states blamed China for the coronavirus pandemic. Chinese President Xi is pictured at a political meeting in Beijing in 2018
Chinese state-run newspaper the Global Times claimed that Beijing was drawing a plan of retaliation against the US after some American politicians and states blamed China for the coronavirus pandemic. Chinese President Xi is pictured at a political meeting in Beijing in 2018
US President Donald Trump (pictured on May 7) billed COVID-19 as 'the plague from China' in a tweet that's bound to draw ire from Beijing. Trump wrote yesterday: 'We just made a great Trade Deal, the ink was barely dry, and the World was hit by the Plague from China'
US President Donald Trump (pictured on May 7) billed COVID-19 as 'the plague from China' in a tweet that's bound to draw ire from Beijing. Trump wrote yesterday: 'We just made a great Trade Deal, the ink was barely dry, and the World was hit by the Plague from China'
The pandemic has claimed more than 297,000 lives and infected over 4.3 million worldwide after first emerging in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December.
The United States has been the country worst-hit by the coronavirus, with a death toll of more than 84,000.
Missouri filed a lawsuit against China last month, accusing it of 'lying to the world about the danger and contagious nature of COVID-19'. Mississippi said a day later it was also preparing to sue Beijing for similar reasons.
Sources told the Global Times that China 'is extremely dissatisfied' about those lawsuits.
Beijing's officials allegedly deem these cases as 'vexatious litigation', a legal term that means the proceedings started with malice and without a good cause.  
One expert told the state-run outlet that China 'must beat him hard' as he commented on the 'countermeasures'. The paper did not specify who 'he' is.
The sources did not reveal What retaliation China is planning.
The US state of Missouri filed a lawsuit against China last month, accusing it of 'lying to the world about the danger and contagious nature of COVID-19'. Pictured, people wearing protective masks walk past shops closed due to the virus in Brentwood, Missouri, on May 7
The US state of Missouri filed a lawsuit against China last month, accusing it of 'lying to the world about the danger and contagious nature of COVID-19'. Pictured, people wearing protective masks walk past shops closed due to the virus in Brentwood, Missouri, on May 7
The US has recorded more than 84,000 deaths and over 1.4 million infections in the pandemic
Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson from the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said he did not have comments on the reported retaliatory plan after being asked about it at a press briefing today.
But the officials blasted 'some American people' for trying to hold China accountable for the pandemic.
He claimed that those people were laying their faults at other people's door and shirking their responsibilities.
Zhao did not name specific names.
He added: 'The Chinese side urges the US to stop its slander and smearing against China, stop reviewing and pushing forward relevant anti-China motions, curb the vexatious litigation behaviour targeting China, and spend its energy on tackling the epidemic and safeguarding the life safety of American people.
'Such blame games from the US side are too dull and laughable. Please stop.'
Zhao Lijian (pictured on April 8), a spokesperson from the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said he did not have comments on the reported retaliatory plan after being asked about it
Zhao Lijian (pictured on April 8), a spokesperson from the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said he did not have comments on the reported retaliatory plan after being asked about it
Political tensions between China and the US have erupted in the past few months as the two nations condemn each other's handling of the coronavirus outbreak.
The US accuses China of covering up the initial epidemic, hiding the virus's origin and taking advantage of the crisis to push its territorial ambitions.
China accuses the US of carrying out 'smear campaigns' and avoiding its responsibilities in containing the disease. Zhao, the spokesperson of China's foreign ministry, has suggested that the virus was planted in Wuhan by the US troops. 
The US state of Missouri last month claimed that China's officials were to blame for the devastating crisis that is sweeping the world.
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt (pictured in 2019) accused Beijing of lying to the world about the contagionMississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch (pictured) said China must not be allowed to act with impunity
Missouri has sued China and Mississippi is preparing to sue. Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt (left) accused Beijing of lying to the world about the contagion while Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch (right) said China must not be allowed to act with impunity
The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court for Eastern Missouri on April 21, alleged that Chinese officials were 'responsible for the enormous death, suffering, and economic losses they inflicted on the world, including Missourians'.
'The Chinese government lied to the world about the danger and contagious nature of COVID-19, silenced whistleblowers, and did little to stop the spread of the disease,' Republican Attorney General Eric Schmitt's office said in a written statement.
'They must be held accountable for their actions.'
The state of Mississippi was preparing a similar suit to 'hold the Communist nation accountable for the malicious and dangerous acts that caused death, health injuries, and serious economic loss from the COVID-19 crisis'.
'Too many Mississippians have suffered as a result of China's cover-up,' said Attorney General Lynn Fitch in a statement.
'They must not be allowed to act with impunity. Mississippians deserve justice and I will seek that in court.'
Beijing slammed the Missouri lawsuit as 'ridiculous' and 'malicious'. The Global Times called the US 'a hooligan' after the two states took legal actions. 
In his latest tweet, Trump referred to the novel coronavirus as 'the Plague from China'.
He wrote on Wednesday: 'As I have said for a long time, dealing with China is a very expensive thing to do.
'We just made a great Trade Deal, the ink was barely dry, and the World was hit by the Plague from China.
'100 Trade Deals wouldn't make up the difference - and all those innocent lives lost!'
The plague, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, was the cause of some of the world's deadliest pandemics, including the Justinian Plague, the Black Death, and the major epidemics that swept through China in the late 1800s.
Trump has previously called the virus the 'Chinese virus' multiple times before steering away from the term.
The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has referred to the virus the 'Wuhan virus' after the city in China where it was first detected.
The World Health Organization and others have cautioned against giving the virus a geographic name because of its global nature.
Critics have said that such terms foster discriminatory sentiments and behaviour against Asians and Asian Americans.

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