Editor's note: Alessandro Golombiewski Teixeira is a National Thousand Talent Distinguished Professor of Public Policy at the School of Public Policy and Management, Tsinghua University, and a professor of International Business at Schwarzman College in Tsinghua. He is a former special economic advisor to the president of Brazil and former Brazilian minister of tourism, and minister of development, industry and foreign trade. He was also president of the World Investment Association – WAIPA. The article reflects the author's views, not necessarily those of CGTN.

While the world is still suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic, a small group of U.S. politicians are relentlessly trying to politicize the traceability of the coronavirus and stigmatize China for of their own ulterior motives. The House Foreign Affairs Committee minority staff, led by ranking Republican Michael McCaul (Tex.), released an 84-page updated version of the "Origins of COVID-19 Report" on August 2, smearing China with unwarranted attacks based on a deliberate patchwork of dates and events.

According to the report, Wuhan Institute of Virology, the world's leading bat coronavirus research center, as well as other labs in Wuhan, are the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic. It also draws a conclusion that the virus was present as early as September 2019, pushing back the timeline of the pandemic by two to three months. The report continues to peddle the big lie of the "Chineselab leak theory", and is a complete rehash of the same old story.

In the absence of raw data and basic facts, the report holds the belief that the virus that caused the COVID-19 pandemic leaked from a Chinese research facility. Nevertheless, it's in contradiction to the consensus in the academic community that the coronavirus is of a natural origin.

On February 19, 2020, The Lancet, among the most respected and influential medical journals in the world, published a statement that roundly rejected the lab-leak hypothesis, effectively casting it as a xenophobic cousin to climate change denialism and the anti-vaxxer movement. Signed by 27 scientists, the statement expressed the "solidarity of all scientists and health professionals in China" and asserted: "We stand together to strongly condemn the conspiracy theories which suggest that COVID-19 does not have a natural origin."

Besides, the World Health Organization has wrapped up its investigation in China into the origins of COVID-19, saying it's highly unlikely that the virus leaked from a lab and more research is necessary. The WHO-led team traveled to China in early 2021 and had an in-depth scientific exchange with scientists from Wuhan Institute of Virology.

As the New York Times reported, reports of new cases in the U.S. have exploded in recent weeks as the Delta variant has spread. The country is averaging more than seven times as many cases a day than it was at the start of July. The core indicators of the pandemic, including new cases, deaths and hospitalization, have rebounded severely. The United States is flawed in the fight against the pandemic, and the last Republican government has to be blamed.

Now, the pandemic is even more serious in the Republican-run U.S. states like Florida. In Florida, the epicenter of another outbreak, Governor Ron DeSantis even signed an executive order refusing to mandate masks in schools and promising "no lockdown." In Texas, Governor Greg Abbott denied the mandatory vaccinations of local and state agencies. The Republican politicians are taking the investigation into the origins of COVID-19 as a political tool to cover up their incompetency in fighting the coronavirus.

U.S. President Joe Biden in May ordered U.S. intelligence agencies to accelerate their hunt for the origins of the virus and report back in 90 days. With only about three weeks left before the deadline, there are still a lot of controversies surrounding the origin of the COVID-19 in the United States. The House Foreign Affairs Committee minority staff, chose this time to hype the "lab leak theory", attempting to hold the nose of the White House on the issue of coronavirus traceability.

Above all, the investigation into the origins of COVID-19 is a serious and complex scientific issue. It should be based on a global perspective and carried out by global scientists in cooperation. Only by putting science first can the investigation truly help human beings better prevent major pandemic risks in the future.

However, some U.S. politicians are still blind to science and facts, and are obsessed with political manipulation, shifting the responsibility for their own ineffectiveness in fighting the pandemic. They have fabricated and spread a series of lies involving China for political purposes since the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

At present, the coronavirus outbreak has not been effectively controlled, and the Delta variant has emerged in many countries especially in those countries that have relegated science to second place and have placed politics first. All stakeholders must strengthen their cooperation to prevent and control the global pandemic and save the lives of people in all countries. Meanwhile, on the issue of coronavirus traceability, we should get rid of political interference and strengthen the cooperation and exchange of scientific research among countries, avoiding a repeat of the tragedy.

(If you want to contribute and have specific expertise, please contact us at opinions@cgtn.com.)