Spy work

US spies having trouble assessing coronavirus spread in China, Russia: report

With nearly 800,000 coronavirus cases worldwide, intelligence agencies in the U.S. are having difficulties determining the outbreak situation in countries such as China, Russia, and North Korea, government sources told Reuters.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo previously suggested there might be a lack of accurate information on Russia and Iran. He also accused China of a disinformation campaign amid an absence of new cases, which Beijing denies.

An understanding of the COVID-19 outbreak in those countries could help the U.S. and international efforts to limit the impact of COVID-19.