https://nerdhaspower.weebly.com/ratg13-is-fake.html

Full disclosure: While I consider myself conversant with many sciences and technologies, 'biology' is probably my area of least knowledge.

I rapidly skimmed this article, but was doubtful when I saw this:

> "RaTG13 looks like a “close cousin” of the Wuhan coronavirus – the two are 96% identical throughout the whole sequence of the viral genome. If RaTG13 is a nature-borne virus, one can comfortably conclude that the Wuhan coronavirus must very likely also come from nature and must share a recent common ancestor with RaTG13."

[end of quote]

My impression is that if two viruses are ONLY "96% identical" "throughout the whole sequence of the viral genome", they shouldn't be described as a "close cousin". Should it be called a "not-so-close cousin"? I don't know.