US health chief Azar says in Taiwan that China ‘had chance to warn world about coronavirus outbreak’

US Health Secretary Alex Azar, who is visiting Taiwan, attacked China’s response to the coronavirus pandemic on Tuesday. The Trump administration has repeatedly criticized Beijing for trying to cover up the virus outbreak, first identified in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year. China denies the accusations.

“The Chinese Communist Party had the chance to warn the world and work with the world on battling the virus. But they chose not to, and the costs of that choice mount higher every day,” Azar said in Taipei.

As the virus emerged, China did not live up to its “binding” international obligations, Reuters quoted the US official as saying. “I believe it is no exaggeration to say that if this virus had emerged in a place like Taiwan or the US, it might have been snuffed out easily,” Azar said.

The health secretary arrived in Taiwan on Sunday as the highest-level US official to visit in four decades. The trip was condemned by China.