Chinese envoy vows to continue to provide aid, urges against politicization of pandemic

The Chinese envoy to the European Union said on Friday that no matter what kind of labels are given to China's assistance efforts, the country will continue to help others fight the coronavirus and save as many lives as possible.

Zhang Ming, head of the Chinese Mission to the EU, said in a conversation with Friends of Europe, a Brussels-based think tank, that "COVID-19 is a human tragedy, not a playground for politics."

"As the WHO pointed out, we are fighting both the pandemic and the infodemic. Disinformation is an enemy for all of us and should be addressed by all of us. From the very beginning, China suffered a lot from disinformation," he said.

"In the most difficult moments in fighting the virus, China received kind assistance from Europe," he said, noting that it was widely covered by the Chinese media and spoken highly of by the Chinese people.

"No one said it's politics of generosity (or) something like that," he said.

"And China's help to Europe, like Europe's help to China, is a sign of solidarity, not political calculation," he said.

The Chinese envoy said that apart from Europe, China is also cooperating with Africa and other vulnerable regions. The EU is doing similar things, he said, adding that the actions of both sides are about serving the public good, not a geopolitical game.

At this difficult time, the Chinese envoy has called for solidarity instead of political calculation to jointly fight the epidemic.

"We'd better forget politics now; we are in a very special time. We're in a battle, a battle between the sapiens and the virus. We cannot just start another battle, a battle between a group of the sapiens and another. It's wrong."

"Anyway, no matter what kind of labels are put on China's efforts, we will continue to do the right thing -- that is, to extend a helping hand and save as many lives as possible," Zhang said. "This is what really matters."