Coronavirus update: Australian Minister tests positive; he had met Ivanka Trump in the US

NEW DELHI: Peter Dutton, Australian Minister for Home Affairs and Federal Member for Dickson tested positive for coronavirus.

He has put out a tweet saying:

https://twitter.com/PeterDutton_MP/status/1238356766850576385

He was in the US to attend a meeting with members of five eyes intelligence alliance -- Australia, the United States, Britain, Canada, and New Zealand.

Dutton had attended a cabinet meeting and had come in contact with other minister on Tuesday.

New Zealand Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin -- who also met Dutton in Washington will self-isolate and then get tested for the virus.

It was also reported that, Sophie Gregoire Trudeau, wife of PM of Canada Justin Trudeau has tested positive for coronavirus.

Her husband, PM of Canada Justin Trudeau, has also isolated himself for 14 days. The PM has not shown any signs of the infection yet, according to reports.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for action on the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the disease a pandemic. “Today’s declaration of a pandemic is a call to action — for everyone, everywhere. It’s also a call for responsibility and solidarity as nations united and as people united,” Guterres said on Wednesday in a message, Xinhua reported. But he warned against panic. “As we fight the virus, we cannot let the fear go viral.”

Meanwhile, Lijian Zhao, Spokesperson & Deputy Director General, Information Department, Foreign Ministry, has gone ahead and pointed blame at the US Army.

He tweeted, “The director of the US Centers for Disease Control was arrested. When did Patient Zero appear in the United States? How many people are infected? What is the name of the hospital? It may be that the US military brought the epidemic to Wuhan. America needs to be transparent! To make the data public! The United States owes us an explanation!”

The US President, Donald Trump, retweeted a tweet from conservative commentator Charlie Kirk referring to COVID-19 as the “China Virus."

Also Read: Coronavirus impact on trade in India worth Rs 34.8 crore, according to UN report

Also Watch: Coal laden truck overturns at Tinsukia-Makum bypass road, Driver injured