Washington D.C. [USA], Mar 24 : US President Donald Trump on Monday (local time) condemned the use of "nasty language" against the Asian American citizens, amid allegations that Trump's use of the term "Chinese virus" has resulted in a backlash from the American public.
This comes at the backdrop of reports that the said community is being targetted with racial slurs because of the Asian origin of the novel coronavirus.
"Nasty language is being used against Asian American citizens. They are great American citizens. And I do not want that," said Trump during a coronavirus task force press brief.
Earlier in the day, Trump had tweeted the same saying that Asian American community must be protected against any racial discrimination.
"It is very important that we protect our Asian American community in the US and all around the world. They are amazing people. And the spreading of the virus is not their fault in any way. They are working closely with us to get rid of it. We will prevail together," he said.
Commenting on the travel ban imposed on certain countries, he said: "We cannot let the cure be worse than the problem itself. We are not going to let the cure be worse than the problem. At the end of the 15-day period, we will make a decision as to which way we want to go."
He added: "And essentially, we are referring to the timing of the opening, essentially, the opening of our country. Because we have it pretty well shut-down in order to get rid of this invisible enemy."
( With inputs from ANI )