New Delhi, Jan. 28 -- Beijing has dismissed the recent claim by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) that COVID-19 is more likely to have originated from a Chinese laboratory, describing it as "extremely unlikely." The response comes after the CIA's assessment on Saturday (January 25) suggested that a lab leak was the more probable cause of the pandemic, rather than natural animal transmission.

Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning on Monday (January 28) strongly refuted the lab leak theory, asserting that it was "extremely unlikely" COVID-19 came from a laboratory. She emphasised that the conclusion was made by the China-WHO joint expert team, which conducted field visits to relevant laboratories in Wuhan.

Mao stated, "The con...