The Origins of COVID-19
Date: May 5, 2020
Classification: Unclassified
Branch/Agency: NCSB
Issue:
Recent media reports have suggested that the Five Eyes allies (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States) disagree on the origins of COVID-19, in particular with regards to public claims by the U.S. that the pandemic is the result of a laboratory accident in Wuhan, China.
Proposed Response:
- Canadians have important questions about the origins of COVID-19 and rest assured they will be answered in due course.
- Our top priority at the moment remains ensuring the safety of Canadians and that we continue to flatten the curve.
- I cannot comment on the contents of specific media reports or on the public statements of our allies regarding the origins of COVID-19.
- However, I can assure you that Canada’s security and intelligence community continues to provide timely advice to the Government of Canada, including in support of our collective response to COVID-19.
- The Five Eyes alliance is one of Canada’s most important multilateral relationships, and we will continue to work with our closest friends and partners to understand the origins of the pandemic.
Background:
On May 4, 2020, two articles were published in Foreign Policy and the Guardian, respectively, that cited disagreement amongst the Five Eyes allies on the origins of COVID-19. The Foreign Policy article noted that Australia, Canada, and the U.K. have not supported U.S. claims that COVID-19 originated at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. The article quotes Prime Minister Trudeau that it is “still too early to draw conclusions”, and U.K. Prime Minister Johnson that finding answers “will need to be done with all our international partners, including China.” For its part, the Guardian article refers to a 15-page document published by the Australian Daily Telegraph, which claimed to be drafted by “concerned Western governments” that supported the laboratory accident; however, the article revealed that this document was unofficial and culled from open sources. Indeed, it should be noted that with respect to Australia, Prime Minister Morrison has openly pushed for an international inquiry into the issue, which in turn has received sharp rebukes from Beijing. New Zealand has remained quiet on the issue.
In Canada, both Minister Hajdu and Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Tam have been asked by the media about the origins of COVID-19, with both responding that those questions have not yet been answered. The Prime Minister has publicly stated that no consensus amongst the Five Eyes on the origins of COVID-19 has been reached; while some media may interpret this as a disagreement amongst allies, it more likely reflects a common need for more thorough investigation and analysis on the issue in the coming months.
Contacts:
Prepared by: Justin Chan, Acting Manager, National Security Policy Directorate, 343-542-8465
Approved by: Dominic Rochon, Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, National and Cyber Security Branch, 613-990-4976
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