Pompeo is “one of the worst secretaries of the state in American history,” the Xinhua state news agency said in a translation by the Wall Street Journal. The similarly state-run Global Times wrote in an editorial, “Pompeo is indulging in a solo performance that has failed to adhere to the professional standards expected of a chief diplomat. His claims are not supported by scientists or reliable intelligence.”

China’s state broadcaster CCTV broadcast a commentary segment entitled “Evil Pompeo is wantonly spewing poison and spreading lies.”

“The so-called ‘virus leaked from a Wuhan lab’ hype is a complete and utter lie,” CCTV stated in a translation by Qatari government-owned Al Jazeera. “American politicians are rushing to shift the blame, cheat votes and suppress China when their own domestic anti-epidemic efforts are a mess.”

Chinese state media have repeatedly criticized Pompeo, who took a hard line against China even before the coronavirus pandemic.

“I can tell you that there is a significant amount of evidence that [the coronavirus] came from that laboratory in Wuhan,” Pompeo said in a Sunday appearance on ABC’s This Week. Pompeo was referring to the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which studies coronaviruses.

World Health Organization adviser Jamie Metzl told National Review in an interview that it was “likely” that the coronavirus did indeed escape from a lab in Wuhan, although the allegation has not yet been confirmed. China has so far refused to allow WHO representatives to participate in an investigation of the coronavirus’s origins.

U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that China attempted to cover up the spread of coronavirus during the initial stages of the pandemic, in order to stock up on medical supplies before other nations.