Mask diplomacy: China tries to rewrite virus narrative

BEIJING: With millions of face masks, low interest loans and teams of medical experts, China is trying to paint itself as a Good Samaritan while deflecting criticism over its initial missteps in handling the coronavirus.

Beijing has showered struggling European nations with aid as part of a diplomatic charm offensive.

In recent weeks, it has also donated hundreds of thousands of surgical masks and test kits to the Philippines and Pakistan, sent teams of medics to Iran and Iraq, and extended a $500 million loan to help Sri Lanka combat the virus.

While COVID-19 first emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December, Beijing says it has now curbed its spread, with new domestic cases dwindling to zero on Thursday. But as other governments now scramble to cope with the pandemic, China is sending masks, medical supplies and experts.

It comes as Beijing and Washington are engaged in a tit-for-tat public opinion war over China’s recent mass expulsion of US journalists and President Donald Trump’s continued use of the phrase "Chinese virus" to describe the coronavirus.

Trump slammed China for its lack of transparency over the pandemic that has now infected more than 240,000 worldwide, saying "the world is paying a big price" in a news conference on Thursday.

China’s foreign ministry hit back on Friday, saying the US was trying to "shift the blame" for the pandemic. With the US also battling the virus on its home turf, analysts say China is rushing to reposition itself as an alternative global leader.

"Now, with the US government under Trump failing to provide any meaningful international response and the EU occupied with national responses, it offers China’s government a unique opportunity to step into the empty spot," said Marina Rudyak, an expert in Chinese foreign aid at the University of Heidelberg.

By doing so, China was also trying to rewrite the COVID-19 narrative, deflecting criticism of its initial attempts to cover up the outbreak and posing as the saviour of "other countries who either delayed their response or were less prepared than China," added Rudyak.

President Xi Jinping pledged assistance to hardest-hit Italy and Spain in phone calls with their prime ministers, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

Two Chinese medical teams were sent to Italy in a high-profile show of solidarity with the earliest European Union partner in Xi’s massive "Belt and Road" infrastructure project. Italy is now the second hardest-hit country in the world with more than 35,000 cases.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Twitter this week that China would ship two million masks to Europe "immediately" and expressed her gratitude to Premier Li Keqiang. She said the EU helped China in January, by donating equipment, and tweeted: "Today, we’re grateful for China’s support."