The US has delayed a regional ASEAN summit scheduled to take place in Las Vegas this month due to fears about the spread of COVID-19, a senior administration official said on Friday.
“As the international community works together to defeat the novel coronavirus, the United States, in consultation with ASEAN partners, has made the difficult decision to postpone the ASEAN leaders meeting,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
ASEAN leaders were scheduled to be hosted by US President Donald Trump on March 14.
Photo: AP
The US “values our relationships with the nations of this critical region, and looks forward to future meetings,” the official said.
The announcement came as health officials in California confirmed the US’ second case believed to have been transmitted to a person who did not travel overseas or come in contact with anyone known to be infected.
Trump has played down fears of a major outbreak in the US, even as infections ricochet worldwide.
There are now more daily cases being recorded outside of China than inside the country, where the virus first emerged in December last year, the WHO said.
More than 2,700 people have died in China and about 78,000 have been infected. There have been more than 50 deaths and 3,600 cases in dozens of other nations, raising fears of a pandemic.
Trump last year skipped an ASEAN summit and parallel East Asia Summit in Bangkok.
He instead sent US National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien, in the lowest-level participation ever by the US in the East Asia Summit.
The move came after years of US efforts to show that Washington is committed to Asia in the face of a rising China.
In Japan, major cherry blossom festivals have been canceled due to an outbreak of COVID-19, the latest in a growing list of events quashed as the virus spreads globally.
The traditional spring celebrations in Tokyo and Osaka, which attract millions of people wanting to seeing the white and pink flowers, would not go ahead as planned next month.
“We are sincerely sorry for those who were looking forward to the viewing ... but please give us your understanding,” the Japan Mint said in Osaka on Friday.
Other cherry blossom events — feverishly anticipated by locals and tourists — are likely to follow suit, local media reported.
The organizers of Tokyo’s Nakameguro Cherry Blossom Festival said that people could still enjoy the blooming trees that grow along public roads.
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