China blasted U.S. Senator Rick Scott's accusation that Beijing is trying to slow down or sabotage the development of a COVID-19 vaccine by Western countries, saying that the senator should present the evidence for his accusation.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying made the remarks during a daily briefing on Monday, in response to Scott's comments in an interview on Sunday.

The U.S. should promise to make its COVID-19 vaccine a global public good when available, said Hua, adding that the research and development of a coronavirus vaccine is not a competition between China and the U.S., but a battle between humans and the coronavirus.