Beijing will retaliate if the US Congress passes legislation seeking sanctions against China over the coronavirus pandemic, the spokesman for the country's parliament said Thursday.

Tensions between the global superpowers have soared in recent weeks as they have traded verbal blows over the disease.

Washington has criticised Beijing for its initial handling of the virus, which emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year before spreading around the world.

US President Donald Trump stepped up the rhetoric on Wednesday by tweeting that China was responsible for "mass Worldwide killing".

Republican senators proposed legislation last week that would empower Trump to slap sanctions on China if Beijing does not give a "full accounting" for the outbreak.

"We firmly oppose these bills, and will make a firm response and take countermeasures based on the deliberation of these bills," spokesman Zhang Yesui said at a news conference on the eve of the annual session of the National People's Congress.

"It is neither responsible nor moral to cover up one's own problems by blaming others. We will never accept any unwarranted lawsuits and demands for compensation," Zhang said.

The US state of Missouri has also sued China's leadership over the coronavirus, seeking damages over what it described as deliberate deception and insufficient action to stop the pandemic.

China rebuts Trump accusation of coronavirus 'mass killing'
Beijing (AFP) May 21, 2020 - China offered a low-key rebuttal to United States President Donald Trump's accusation of mass killing on Thursday, with a foreign ministry official insisting the country did its best to protect lives during the pandemic.

Tensions between the US and China have been on the rise as the deadly coronavirus, which first surfaced in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, ravaged the global economy.

Trump has since made attacking Beijing a centrepiece of his November re-election bid, alleging it covered up the initial outbreak of the virus -- a claim that China forcefully denies.

Beijing's latest response came a day after Trump blamed China for "mass Worldwide killing" in a tweet, which also referred to an unidentified "wacko".

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a regular press briefing: "We have persisted in speaking the truth, presenting the truth and speaking with reason, doing our utmost to protect the lives and health of the people."

Zhao reiterated China's stance that it has "always had an open, transparent and responsible attitude" as it battled the pandemic.

He added the country has been doing its best to promote international cooperation against the pathogen.

China has come under fire for its initial response over the outbreak, which has since claimed over 325,000 lives around the globe.

As the virus continued its worldwide march, governments including the US and Australia called for an investigation into its origins, with US leaders pushing a theory that the pathogen had leaked from a Chinese maximum-security laboratory.

China has since said it supports a "comprehensive evaluation" of the global response to the pandemic after it has been brought under control.

Zhao, however, said earlier in the week that the draft motion currently under discussion at the World Health Assembly is "completely different from the so-called 'independent international inquiry' into the pandemic previously mentioned by Australia".

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