"China likely cut its exports of medical supplies prior to its January WHO (World Health Organization) notification that COVID-19 is a contagion," the report reads, according to one source.
A second source confirmed the authenticity of the document to CNN on Monday. The report, which assessed export and import data earlier this year, was circulated within the federal government on Friday, the source said. ABC first reported its existence.
Earlier Sunday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stepped up administration claims that China mounted efforts to hide the extent of the coronavirus spread, including concealing the severity while stockpiling medical supplies. "You've got the facts just about right," Pompeo told ABC's "This Week" when asked if China intentionally stockpiled medical supplies in early January while it concealed the severity of Covid-19. "We can confirm that the Chinese Communist Party did all that it could to make sure that the world didn't learn in a timely fashion about what was taking place."
