Beijing, China - May 11, 2022 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of press briefing in progress
2. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhao Lijian, spokesman, Ministry of Foreign Affairs:
"As a country with the most advanced medical technology and the richest medical resources in the world, the U.S. government's ineffective response to the epidemic is not only a natural disaster but more of a man-made calamity, which reflects the U.S. government's disregard for and inaction on human life."
3. Various of press briefing in progress
4. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhao Lijian, spokesman, Ministry of Foreign Affairs:
"The ravages of the pandemic and long-standing social problems in the U.S. have compounded the chronic human rights problems in the U.S. It is reported that the 'Chinese virus' and 'Wuhan virus' concocted by U.S. politicians are exacerbating racial crimes. Hate crimes against Asians alone surged 149 percent in the U.S. in 2020."
5. Reporters
6. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhao Lijian, spokesman, Ministry of Foreign Affairs:
"Systemic racial discrimination has made ethnic minorities more vulnerable to the epidemic. More than 200,000 children in the U.S. have been orphaned, with children of racial and ethnic minorities accounting for as high as 65 percent of the total."
7. Reporters
8. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhao Lijian, spokesman, Ministry of Foreign Affairs:
"We sympathize with the suffering caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to the American people, and hope that the U.S. side will take epidemic prevention and control seriously and the prediction of 100 million coronavirus infections will not become an unfortunate reality."
9. Various of press briefing in progress

China hopes that the United States' prediction of 100 million coronavirus infections will not come true, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian at a regular press briefing in Beijing on Wednesday.
According to reports, the Biden administration is issuing a new warning that the U.S. could potentially see 100 million COVID-19 infections this fall and winter.

"As a country with the most advanced medical technology and the richest medical resources in the world, the U.S. government's ineffective response to the epidemic is not only a natural disaster but more of a man-made calamity, which reflects the U.S. government's disregard for and inaction on human life," said Zhao.

"The ravages of the pandemic and long-standing social problems in the U.S. have compounded the chronic human rights problems in the U.S. It is reported that the 'Chinese virus' and 'Wuhan virus' concocted by U.S. politicians are exacerbating racial crimes. Hate crimes against Asians alone surged 149 percent in the U.S. in 2020," Zhao noted.

"Systemic racial discrimination has made ethnic minorities more vulnerable to the epidemic. More than 200,000 children in the U.S. have been orphaned, with children of racial and ethnic minorities accounting for as high as 65 percent of the total," said Zhao.

Zhao noted that the pandemic has not stopped police violence in the U.S., and the number of gun violence has continued to increase. At least 1,124 people died in 2021 due to U.S. police violence, and the number of hospital visits for gunshot wounds jumped by 34 percent, both draining much-needed medical resources from infected patients.

"We sympathize with the suffering caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to the American people, and hope that the U.S. side will take epidemic prevention and control seriously and the prediction of 100 million coronavirus infections will not become an unfortunate reality," said Zhao.