Foreign ministers of the G7 countries failed to agree to a joint statement following a video conference Wednesday in part because the Trump administration insisted the statement refer to COVID-19 as the "Wuhan virus," Der Spiegel first reported and multiple U.S. outlets have confirmed.

Why it matters: The world's two most powerful countries are in a battle of narratives over the pandemic, with some in Beijing spreading disinformation about its origins and U.S. officials like Secretary of State Mike Pompeo increasingly blaming the Chinese government.

The phrase "Wuhan virus" has not been adopted by other countries, and G7 members considered it needlessly antagonistic.

The countries ultimately agreed on a common set of principles and actions to confront the coronavirus, and each released their own statements after the video conference.

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