Pompeo: China 'put countless lives at risk'

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is accused the Chinese Communist Party of failing to cooperate and be helpful in the wake of the global coronavirus pandemic.

“Instead of trying to do the work to suppress the virus, which is what the world demanded, the Chinese Communist Party didn’t get it right and put countless live at risk as a result of that,” Pompeo said Wednesday night on the FOX News Channel's "Hannity" show.

“They haven’t been sufficiently transparent. And the risk you find [is] if we don’t get this right … this could be something that is repeatable,” he also said. "Transparency matters.”

There are still several hundred Americans stranded in countries that have imposed strict rules on moving about freely.

“The United States is sparing no effort to protect our people and contain the global #coronavirus pandemic," Pompeo said Monday. "Beijing must acknowledge its role and be part of the solution.”

Critics of how China has addressed the outbreak that started in that country in late-2019 say U.S. medical experts' offer to help in China at the beginning of the viral spread was an attempt to limit the global transparency of the situation.