The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has shared an updated stance, stating that the COVID-19 pandemic is “more likely” to have originated from a laboratory than from a natural source.
This significant development was revealed by a spokesperson for the agency on Saturday, January 25, 2025.
The CIA has previously maintained an inconclusive position regarding the pandemic’s origins, unable to confirm whether it stemmed from a lab incident or a natural source.
However, in the final phase of President Joe Biden’s administration, former CIA Director William Burns pushed analysts and scientists within the agency to reach a definitive conclusion, Burns emphasized the historical importance of the pandemic, prompting the agency to prioritize the matter.
Despite the new findings, the CIA states that it has “low confidence” in its assessment that the pandemic likely originated from a “research-related incident.”
The agency also highlighted that both possibilities a laboratory origin and a natural origin remain plausible and are still under review.
This revelation raises questions about the intelligence the CIA relied on to reach its conclusion as it remains unclear whether the agency has acquired new evidence or updated intelligence, which may have influenced its recent assessment.
The Chinese embassy in Washington has yet to respond to the CIA’s latest statement, meanwhile, Beijing has consistently denied claims of a laboratory leak, claiming that such accusations lack credibility.
China has also accused the U.S. of politicizing the pandemic’s origins and interfering with ongoing scientific research on the matter.
China’s government has since maintained that it supports research into COVID-19’s origins and has participated in global efforts to uncover the truth. However, tensions remain high between the two nations, with China viewing U.S. intelligence agencies’ investigations as politically motivated.
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CIA Director John Ratcliffe, confirmed by the U.S. Senate last Friday, emphasized the importance of public clarity regarding the pandemic’s origins. In an interview with Breitbart, Ratcliffe said that determining and sharing the origin of COVID-19 is one of his top priorities.
“That’s a day-one thing for me,” Ratcliffe stated. “I’ve been clear in my belief that intelligence, science, and common sense strongly indicate that the origins of COVID-19 are linked to a leak at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.”
Ratcliffe’s comments reflect a broader effort to make intelligence findings on the pandemic more accessible to the public, as well as to address ongoing debates about how the virus emerged.
