This archive report was first published on 20 July 2020.
On January 2018, the State Department released a diplomatic cable highlighting concerns about the Wuhan Institute of Virology's (WIV) safety protocols. The cable, obtained after a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, noted a 'serious shortage of appropriately trained technicians and investigators needed to safely operate this high-containment laboratory.'
According to the cable, ties between the WIV and the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston could alleviate the shortage. The US-based institution was reportedly training technicians to work at the WIV.
A second cable from April 2018 cited a French official stating that 'French experts have provided guidance and biosafety training to the lab, which will continue.'
Parts of both cables are redacted. The release of these cables has contributed to ongoing debates about the origin of the coronavirus.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo initially suggested that the virus could have escaped from the WIV. However, in a recent interview, he seemed to back away from this theory, stating, 'We know it began in Wuhan, but we don’t know from where or from whom, and those are important things.'
Assessments by scientists and US intelligence-sharing allies have posited that it is 'highly unlikely' the virus originated in a lab. The US intelligence community is investigating both possibilities.
