>>> Breaking news.
Just two days after we learned
of the department of energy's
admittedly low confidence
assessment that the pandemic
began with a lab leak in Wuhan,
China, tonight on fox, FBI
director Christopher Wray
publicly acknowledged the FBI
believes it too, with what
sounds like higher confidence.
>> The FBI has for quite some
time now assessed that the
origins of the pandemic are most
likely a potential lab incident
in Wuhan.
Let me step back for a second.
The FBI has folks, agent,
professionals, analysts,
virologists, microbiologist, et
cetera, who focus specifically
on the dangers of biological
threats which include things
like novel viruses like covid
and the concerns that in the
wrong hands, some bad guys, a
hostile nation state, a
terrorist, a criminal, the
threats that those could pose.
So here you're talking about a
potential leak from a Chinese
government-controlled lab that
killed millions of Americans.
And that's precisely what that
capability was designed for.
>> Director Wray added that the
bureau's investigation
continues, and the Chinese
government, in his view seems to
be trying to obfuscate the work
here.
David Culver joins us with more.
What is the significance of
director Wray's comments?
Do you expect any official
Chinese reaction?
Obviously they have swatted this
down before.
>> They're good at doing that
and they'll continue likely to
do it again.
It's a significant given that
these are his first public
comments on the FBI's
investigation, and he reiterates
that there is moderate
confidence from the agency's
investigation that this started
as a lab leak.
I think what we would love to
see is some of the Intel that
actually details why they come
to that conclusion.
But he held back on specifics,
as of most of these agencies as
they have come forward with
their conclusions.
As far as the Chinese and how
they're going to go forward with
this, it's been playbook at this
point and some is literally
scripted from the foreign
ministry.
At this point they've probably
memorized it, and that is to say
that the U.S. Is trying to smear
China, that this is politicizing
the issue.
They often go back to that
science-based approach.
They say that's the way this
should be done, through science.
The issue with what is while the
W.H.O. Initially said after
their field visit in 2021 that
it's highly unlikely it started
in a lab, the W.H.O. Also asked
to go back.
And if China really wants to
pursue that science-based
approach, you think they would
say all right, come back in.
Anything you need, we'll
provide.
They've done the opposite.
They've said no to the data and
no to another visit.
>> The data is really critical.
They have not provided the data
that scientists would need to
really understand exactly and
zero in on the origin.
>> That's been the issue going
back to the start of this.
Now they argue that they have
provided enough to allow the
international science community
to figure out what steps they
need to move forward, and they
argue that even played into some
of the vaccine creation.
But the reality on the ground
has been that there has just
been a wall after wall for a lot
of these scientists and
researchers who pointed out that
they were not there as
investigators.
They wanted to stress that.
And that's kind of a way to ease
in from the Chinese side in
particular, because they don't
want the Chinese to think that
they're really trying to convict
them on something.
The Chinese hated this idea that
they will potentially be seen as
to be blamed globally for this.
But the reality has stood that
any information that would get
us conclusive evidence as to how
this started has really not come
from the Chinese, and that
approach doesn't seem to change
any time soon.
>> It's interesting that China
keeps saying this shouldn't be
politicized.
They're clearly aware in some
quarters of political divide
that exists over the lab leak
theory in the United States.
>> Oh, yeah.
They're acutely aware of that.
And they watch closely how it's
played out here in Washington
and particular.
They love that.
They love to see the division
over the discussion of how it
started and Democrats going
against Republicans on this.
That's really what they try to
foster more than anything else.
And they are hoping that that
will continue to distract
things.
The problem that they're seeing
here is there is bipartisan
support to be tough on China and
the party and state media sees
this in particular.
And they hope for another
campaign cycle more than