US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned China on Monday not to spread disinformation on the novel coronavirus after an official in Beijing promoted a conspiracy theory on US involvement. Pompeo raised “strong objections” to Chinese efforts “to shift blame for COVID-19 to the United States” in a phone call with Yang Jiechi, a top foreign policy official in Beijing, the State Department said. Pompeo “stressed that this is not the time to spread disinformation and outlandish rumors, but rather a time for all nations to come together to fight this common threat,” a State Department statement said.