Topline
U.S. intelligence agencies have honed in on two theories for how Covid-19 originated—either that it spread naturally from animal to human in wildlife, or leaked from a lab— President Joe Biden said Wednesday, but he’s asked officials to “redouble their efforts” to reach a definitive conclusion over the next 90 days.
President Joe Biden speaks to reporters before boarding Marine One on the Ellipse, near the White ... [+]
Key Facts
In a statement released Wednesday, Biden said he asked intelligence agencies to deliver a report “on their most up-to-date analysis of the origins of COVID-19” shortly after he took office.
Biden said he received the report earlier this month, which found that U.S. intelligence agencies have “coalesced around two likely scenarios” for Covid-19’s origin, but have not “reached a definitive conclusion.”
Two agencies within the intelligence community are leaning towards the theory the virus “emerged from human contact with an infected animal” while another agency is leaning towards a “lab accident” as the most likely scenario, the statement said.
Each agency has “low or moderate confidence” about their assessment (agencies typically convey their level of confidence when delivering a report to the president.)
Biden said he has now asked intelligence agencies to “redouble their efforts to collect and analyze information that could bring us closer to a definitive conclusion” and to report back to him within 90 days.
This story is developing. Please check back for updates.
Key Background
Biden’s statement comes days after the Wall Street Journal reported new details about a U.S. intelligence report which found several researchers from China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology were hospitalized with Covid-like symptoms in November 2019. Since the pandemic began, the prevailing theory among scientists has been that the virus spread from animal to human in the wild, but recently some experts have urged officials to give the lab leak theory a second look. Earlier this month, a group of 18 prominent scientists published a letter in Science calling the lab leak theory “viable.”
What To Watch For
A conclusion that the virus leaked from a lab in China would carry significant political weight. Both the Trump and Biden administrations have criticized China’s handling of the pandemic including its lack of transparency early on.
Tangent
Trump, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other Republicans in Congress were early proponents of the lab leak theory even as many scientists downplayed the possibility. In recent weeks, Trump and some GOP lawmakers have taken a victory lap, claiming the media and scientists wrongly doubted them.
Further Reading
Trump: ‘I Have Very Little Doubt’ Covid Came From Wuhan Lab (Forbes)
