Taiwan VP, in U.S., repeats accusation China blocked vaccine access

Lai said he was "especially grateful to her last year when Taiwan was unable to obtain vaccines due to the China factor", Taiwan's presidential office said, citing the de facto U.S. ambassador to Washington Hsiao Bi-khim, who is accompanying Lai. Taiwan VP, in U.S., repeats accusation China blocked vaccine access

Region:: World
Category:: Politics
Author/s:: By Reuters
Publication date:: Sunday, 30 January 2022 - 07:33

Taiwan Vice President William Lai used his final day in the United States to repeat an accusation that China blocked the island from obtaining COVID-19 vaccines last year, and to thank a U.S. lawmaker for her role in donating the inoculations.

Last May, Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen accused China of blocking a deal with Germany's BioNTech SE for COVID-19 vaccines, after Beijing offered the shots to the island via a Chinese company just as Taiwan was dealing with a rise in domestic infections.

Beijing has angrily denied trying to stop Taiwan getting vaccines, and also offered Chinese-developed shots which the island rejected, citing safety concerns. China claims Taiwan as its own territory.

Less than two weeks after Tsai's comments, Senator Tammy Duckworth, visiting Taipei with two other U.S. lawmakers, said the United States would donate 750,000 vaccine doses to Taiwan.

Speaking to the Illinois Democrat during a stop over in San Francisco while on the way back to Taiwan from Honduras, Lai offered his thanks.

Lai said he was "especially grateful to her last year when Taiwan was unable to obtain vaccines due to the China factor", Taiwan's presidential office said, citing the de facto U.S. ambassador to Washington Hsiao Bi-khim, who is accompanying Lai.

"She not only actively advocated that the Biden administration should provide vaccines to Taiwan, but also personally went to Taiwan to announce that the United States would donate Taiwan vaccines."

Vice President Lai Ching-te spoke with a senator by phone and met with some U.S. experts virtually in San Francisco on Saturday as he wrapped up his trip to the United States and Honduras.

In his talk with U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth that lasted about 20 minutes, Lai thanked her for her support of Taiwan and help in obtaining COVID-19 vaccines, according to Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴), Taiwan's representative to the United States.

The two also discussed potential areas of cooperation in the future, while Duckworth said the U.S. will not let Taiwan stand alone and expressed an interest in visiting Taiwan again, Hsiao said.

He briefly talked to U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris while in Honduras, drawing Chinese anger, and on Friday had a virtual meeting with U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi.