FRANKFURT: China has faced a backlash from some European countries following suspicions over the former’s role in the novel coronavirus pandemic which has claimed over 1 lakh lives in Europe so far.
German newspapers have put together a 130-billion-pound invoice that it said China ‘owes’ Berlin after the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, international media reports have said.
The report has listed a Euro 27 billion charge for Germany’s lost tourism revenue, some 7.2 billion Euro for German film industry, 50 billion Euro for German small businesses, and over a million an hour for German airline Lufthansa.
A German newspaper Bild also calculated that this totals to 1,550 pounds per person if the GDP of Germany fell by 4.2 per cent.
Meanwhile, Germany, the UK, France, and even the US have criticized China alleging it for covering up the outbreak.
China, meanwhile, said by claiming that the invoice has stirred up ‘xenophobia’ and ‘nationalism’. (With inputs from Agencies)
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