China has strongly denounced the United States for spreading incorrect information and defaming the symbol from other countries, in reaction to a recent news report revealing a selective crusade through the U. S. military to discredit Chinese-made vaccines, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Monday.
Healthcare industry professionals have also warned of the dire consequences of spreading incorrect information about vaccines.
Reuters reported on Friday that the U. S. military introduced a secret program at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic on social media platforms to sow doubts about the efficacy and protection of vaccines made by Chinese developer Sinovac Biotech, among other medical materials from China. Formation
Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a press convention in Beijing on Monday that such moves “only publicize the hegemony and hypocrisy of the United States,” adding that the United States “should behave as a country should behave. ” “.
“The United States has had the practice of manipulating social networks to spread false information, poison public opinion and defame the symbol of other countries. China firmly opposes this,” Lin said.
He added that when Washington needs to involve and repress a country, it ignores it and “coordinates its resources” to defame and discredit it. ” This applies not only to the fabrication and dissemination of false data about Chinese vaccines, but also to aspects, adding defaming the popular Belt and Road Initiative and spreading rumors about the “overcapacity” of new Chinese electric vehicles.
“The foreign network remains lucid in the face of such U. S. behavior,” he said.
Sinovac Biotech has expressed fears about misinformation and rumors circulating online during the COVID-19 pandemic, suspecting planned and intentional campaigns to target the company. In a letter sent to the China Daily on Sunday, the company noted that incorrect online information about vaccines has not only affected its reputation but also undermined the public’s confidence in vaccines.
“Vaccine hesitancy and other negative rumors can cause panic, disrupt stability, and put pressure on families and individuals,” the company said.
Sinovac warned that the long-term stigma of vaccines could harm public acceptance as true in science, public health institutions and governments, and the implementation of public health policies. The company said it has published a lot of knowledge about the effects of the vaccines. trials of their COVID-19 vaccines and the effects of their actual use. More than six hundred studies carried out around the world have demonstrated the protection and effectiveness of vaccines, according to the statement.
“Although the COVID-19 pandemic has been brought under control and Sinovac has made its contribution, the world is still not at peace,” the company said. “We will continue to focus on diseases to safeguard the health of humanity in the future. “
Global fitness experts have denounced skepticism and hesitancy over vaccines and called for concerted efforts to boost public confidence.
Joseph Bresee, an epidemiologist and director of respiratory virus prevention systems at the Taskforce for Global Health, a US-based nonprofit, said hesitancy and suspicion about vaccines is more serious than before the COVID pandemic. -19, and that many populations are less willing to do so. be vaccinated. “Addressing this challenge will require a lot of resources, a lot of methods adapted to other people, a lot of complexity, but obviously it cannot be ignored,” he said in an interview with the Global Alliance for Women. Vaccines and Immunization, or Gavi, in May.
Contact writers in wangxiaoyu@chinadaily. com. cn