Unites States (US) President, Donald Trump yesterday told the United Nations (UN) General Assembly that China must be held accountable by the world for its actions over the COVID-19 pandemic.

Trump accused Beijing of allowing the coronavirus to “leave China and infect the world” in a recorded message played to the annual meeting of the UN.

“The United Nations must hold China accountable for their actions,” he said.

While on broadcast screen in the UN General Assembly hall, Trump effectively transferred his hawkish campaign stump speech to the global stage as he said “We must hold accountable the nation that released this plague upon the world.”

Trump who accused China of only looking after its own interests when the potentially deadly virus first appeared in the city of Wuhan late last year said: “the Chinese government, and the World Health Organization — which is virtually controlled by China — falsely declared that there was no evidence of human-to-human transmission. Later, they falsely said people without symptoms would not spread the disease.”

Due to the due to COVID-19 restrictions, World leaders have been speaking virtually to the UN session in New York.