There's no place for racism in the fight against COVID-19

01:15

China and the United States should "unite to fight" the deadly COVID-19 pandemic, President Xi Jinping said in a call with his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump on Friday. Xi pointed out that Sino-U.S. relations were at a "critical juncture," adding that cooperation was "the only right choice."

The phone call came as the United States overtook China as the country with the most confirmed COVID-19 cases. The two powers have clashed in recent weeks as Trump and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo repeatedly called COVID-19 the "Chinese virus." Trump later dropped the term amid accusations of racism.

Einar Tangen, an independent American international affairs commentator, told CGTN's Dialogue that China-U.S. relations were "deteriorating."

He argued the Trump administration was carrying out "a racist and dog-whistle policy to defame China" in an attempt to aid the president's political future. He also accused the Trump government of ignorance towards people's safety and an over-emphasis on economic and political goals.

Tangen warned that the Trump administration may claim to befriend China on the one hand, while blame China in an attempt to distance itself from domestic critics on the other.

"The animosity seems to be inbred now into the U.S. system and is being reflected unfortunately in the press," he added.

02:18

Marcus Reubenstein, editor at APAC News based in Sydney, Australia, praised China's efforts in fighting the virus. He told Dialogue that the Chinese media's coverage on the virus was objective but was deliberately misread by the West as "propaganda."

As COVID-19 spreads across the globe at an alarming rate, Reubenstein emphasized that "there is no place for racism, there's only place for cooperation." He also stressed the importance of following the WHO's rule of not labeling a disease based on particular regions.

Stigmatization against China is "very unhelpful," he added. To fight against COVID-19, the world needs more dialogue and less hostility.

"Dialogue" is a prime time English-language daily talk show on CGTN. The 30-minute program covers a wide range of domestic and international topics, providing a balanced and critical perspective on current affairs and analysis within the framework of cross-cultural and multi-disciplinary comparisons.

Schedule: Monday-Sunday

Time (GMT): 03:30, 11:30, 19:30

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