Angered by China's 'lies' on COVID-19, UK officials urge PM Johnson to redraw ties with Beijing

London [UK], Mar 31 (ANI): Angered by China's "disinformation, lies and mishandling" of the coronavirus crisis, several top aides of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson have urged the Prime Minister to "redraw" diplomatic ties with the communist nation.
The top British officials have warned that Beijing faces "reckoning" if it has lied about the actual number of coronavirus cases, Business Insider reported.
It is believed that British scientists have raised alarm on the actual number of cases as reported by China and some have even said that the communist state may have cases "15 to 40 times" more than the cases reported so far, which stands at 94,417.
The British officials have also alleged that China is trying to expand its global economic footprint by assisting nations like Iran and Spain that have been severely affected but the novel virus.
These top aides have also called the Prime Minister to rethink diplomatic ties with Beijing.
It is believed that under-pressure Prime Minister Johnson may have to abandon his decision of letting Chinese tech giant Huawei build UK's 5th generation (5G) communication network.
Johnson's decision of letting Huawei build the country's limited yet significant part of communication network has also reportedly displeased US President Donald Trump.
President Donald Trump called up Boris Johnson last month to express his disapproval over the decision to grant the 5G contract to Huawei.
The anger over the decision to let Huawei build the communication network has not only been observed in the labour party held Opposition but also amongst many members of the Prime Minister's own Conservative Party.
Last week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson was tested positive for the coronavirus and since then he has been in self-isolation.
The UK is also facing a severe brunt of the coronavirus outbreak with at least 22,400 confirmed cases and 1,412 deaths. Many in the UK believe that the country is just weeks behind Italy in facing the peak of the disease and hospitals can be overwhelmed by the patients seeking medical assistance.
The coronavirus that first emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December last year has infected 800,049 persons globally and has killed 38,714 people as per the data provided by Johns Hopkins University. (ANI)