'Kung flu'? Trump has 19 different names for Covid-19; slams China's secrecy and deception

United States President Donald Trump while addressing the second 'Salute to America' on America's 244th Independence Day, launched a hard-hitting attack on China and said that America was doing great until it got hit by a virus that came from China.

"The power of tariffs being imposed on foreign lands that took advantage of the United States for decades enabled us to make great trade deals where there were none. Tens of billions of dollars are now paid to the US treasury by the same countries but then we got hit by the virus that came from China," Trump said.

'Secrecy, deceptions and cover-ups'

"We're producing gowns, masks, and surgical equipment...It was almost exclusively made in foreign lands, in particular, China where ironically this virus and others came from. China's secrecy, deceptions, and cover-ups allowed it to spread all over the world and China must be held fully accountable," he added.

Speaking on the COVID-19 vaccines, Trump said, "We are now unbelievably doing well and are testing on vaccines, treatments and therapeutics. I want to send our thanks to scientists and researchers around the country and the world who are at the forefront of our historic effort to rapidly develop and deliver life-saving treatments and ultimately a vaccine. We are unleashing our nation's scientific brilliance and we will likely have a therapeutic and vaccines solution long before the end of the year."

'We have 19 or 20 versions of the name'

Last month, Trump called the novel Coronavirus “Kung Flu”, blaming China for the deadly outbreak across the globe. Addressing an election rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Trump said that COVID-19 has more names than any other disease in history and he can name different versions of it.

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"I can name - Kung flu. I can name 19 different versions of names. Many call it a virus, which it is. Many call it flu. What difference. I think we have 19 or 20 versions of the name," said Trump, playing around the term “Kung Fu” which is a Chinese martial arts practice.

As per the latest update by the Johns Hopkins University, a total of 2,818,588 people in the US have tested positive of coronavirus and 129,584 deaths have been reported till now.

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(With agency inputs)