US Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Alex Azar is to lead a delegation to Taiwan — the highest-level visit by a US Cabinet official since the two sides cut formal relations in 1979.
The plan was announced yesterday morning by the US Department of Health and Human Services and confirmed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA).
Beijing has expressed its concerns to Washington, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Wang Wenbin (汪文斌) said later yesterday.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Taiwan and the US only issued statements saying that the visit would happen “in the coming days.”
MOFA said that due to security concerns, it would not disclose Azar’s schedule, except to say that he would visit President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) — which is headed by Chen — and meet with Taiwanese health experts.
Azar’s trip marks the first visit to Taiwan by an HHS secretary, the first Cabinet member to visit in six years and the highest-level visit by a US Cabinet official since 1979, the department said in a news release.
The visit is part of a US policy to send high-level US officials to Taiwan to reaffirm bilateral ties under the US’ Taiwan Travel Act, which was signed into law by US President Donald Trump in 2018, it said.
The last publicly known visit by a US Cabinet official was by then-US Environmental Protection Agency administrator Gina McCarthy in 2014, the Central News Agency reported.
“I look forward to conveying President Trump’s support for Taiwan’s global health leadership and underscoring our shared belief that free and democratic societies are the best model for protecting and promoting health,” Azar was quoted as saying in the department’s statement.
“This trip represents an opportunity to strengthen our economic and public health cooperation with Taiwan, especially as the United States and other countries work to strengthen and diversify our sources for crucial medical products,” he said.
While in Taiwan, Azar would give a major speech to public health graduate students and alumni of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (USCDC) training program, the HHS said.
He would be joined by American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Chairman James Moriarty, USCDC Chief Medical Officer Mitchell Wolfe, HHS chief of staff Brian Harrison, HHS Office of Global Affairs Director Garrett Grigsby and others, it said.
“Visitors are working closely with relevant Taiwan authorities to minimize health risks to everyone participating in this visit,” the AIT said.
They would obtain reports of negative test results for COVID-19 before they board a US chartered flight, and would receive tests again upon arrival in Taiwan, MOFA said, citing special regulations approved by the CECC.
While in Taiwan, they would have their temperatures and health conditions checked every day, wear masks, maintain proper social distancing and be transported by special vehicles to avoid close contact with members of the public, it said.
Their accommodation would be arranged in compliance with CECC regulations, it said.
Azar and Chen on April 27 spoke by telephone for 30 minutes, while Taiwan and the US have held several virtual forums related to disease response over the past few months.
The two sides might discuss further collaboration on urgent issues, such as allocation of potential COVID-19 vaccines, said Chan Chang-chuan (詹長權), a former dean of National Taiwan University’s College of Public Health.
With the US expected to launch the first COVID-19 vaccine this year, there might be discussions over the authorization of supplies, an issue that has national security implications, Chan said.
Asked if the disease prevention plans for the delegation would be adequate, Chan said that the White House conducts regular virus tests of high-ranking officials, so the risk of infection would be low.
Taiwan should require that its officials, as well as all visitors to the nation, be tested, instead of only having passive quarantine measures, he said.
RESPONSE: The transit sends a message that China’s alignment with other countries would not deter the West from defending freedom of navigation, an academic said Canadian frigate the Ville de Quebec and Australian guided-missile destroyer the Brisbane transited the Taiwan Strait yesterday morning, the first time the two nations have conducted a joint freedom of navigation operation. The Canadian and Australian militaries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Ministry of National Defense declined to confirm the passage, saying only that Taiwan’s armed forces had deployed surveillance and reconnaissance assets, along with warships and combat aircraft, to safeguard security across the Strait. The two vessels were observed transiting northward along the eastern side of the Taiwan Strait’s median line, with Japan being their most likely destination,
GLOBAL ISSUE: If China annexes Taiwan, ‘it will not stop its expansion there, as it only becomes stronger and has more force to expand further,’ the president said China’s military and diplomatic expansion is not a sole issue for Taiwan, but one that risks world peace, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that Taiwan would stand with the alliance of democratic countries to preserve peace through deterrence. Lai made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). “China is strategically pushing forward to change the international order,” Lai said, adding that China established the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, launched the Belt and Road Initiative, and pushed for yuan internationalization, because it wants to replace the democratic rules-based international
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
RSS