Page 5 - atd

A5
WORLD NEWS Wednesday 17 august 2022
China sets sanctions on Taiwan figures to punish U.S., island

BEIJING (AP) — China im- for the most recent con-
posed visa bans and other gressional visit, adding
sanctions Tuesday on Tai- that “Authoritarian #China
wanese political figures as can’t dictate how demo-
it raises pressure on the self- cratic #Taiwan makes
governing island and the friends, wins support, stays
U.S. in response to succes- resilient & shines like a bea-
sive congressional visits. con of freedom.”
The sanctions come a day Tsai’s pro-independence
after China announced Democratic Progressive
more military exercises Party also controls the legis-
in the seas and skies sur- lature, and the vast majori-
rounding Taiwan because ty of Taiwanese favor main-
of what it called “collusion taining the status quo of de
and provocation between facto independence amid
the U.S. and Taiwan.” strong economic and so-
There’s been no word on cial connections between
the timing and scale of the the sides.
Chinese exercises. China accuses the U.S. of
They were announced the encouraging the island’s
same day a U.S. congres- independence through
sional delegation met with the sale of weapons and
Taiwanese President Tsai In this photo released by the Taiwan Legislative Yuan, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, right, engagement between U.S.
Ing-wen, and after a similar and Legislative Yuan Deputy Speaker Tsai Chi-chang arrive for a meeting in Taipei, Taiwan, politicians and the island’s
visit by U.S. House Speaker Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022. Associated Press government. Washington
Nancy Pelosi, the highest- says it does not support in-
level member of the U.S. across the midline of the chang, Chen Jiau-hua and Premier Su Tseng-chang, dependence, has no for-
government to visit Taiwan Taiwan Strait that has long Wang Ting-yu, along with leader of the legislature mal diplomatic ties with the
in 25 years. The Chinese been a buffer between the activist Lin Fei-fan. You Si-kun and Foreign island and maintains that
government objects to sides. They will be barred from Minister Joseph Wu were the two sides should settle
Taiwan having any official In Washington, U.S. State traveling to mainland Chi- already on China’s sanc- their dispute peacefully —
contact with foreign gov- Department spokesperson na, Hong Kong and Ma- tions list and will face more but it is legally bound to en-
ernments because it con- Ned Price told reporters cao, and from having any restrictions, Xinhua said. sure the island can defend
siders Taiwan its own terri- that China had overre- financial or personal con- China exercises no legal itself against any attack.
tory, and its recent saber acted with its “provocative nections with people and authority over Taiwan and Taiwan has put its military
rattling has emphasized its and totally unnecessary entities on the mainland, it’s unclear what effect the on alert, but has taken no
threat to take the island by response to the congressio- according to the ruling sanctions would have. Chi- major countermeasures
military force. nal delegation that visited Communist Party’s Taiwan na has refused all contact against the Chinese ac-
Pelosi’s visit was followed Taiwan earlier this month.” Work Office. The measures with Taiwan’s government tions. That has been reflect-
by nearly two weeks of The targets of China’s latest were designed to “reso- since shortly after the 2016 ed in overriding calm and
threatening Chinese mili- sanctions include Taiwan’s lutely punish” those consid- election of Tsai, who was widespread ambivalence
tary exercises that included de facto ambassador to ered “diehard elements” overwhelmingly reelected among the public, who
the firing of missiles over the the U.S., Bi-khim Hsiao, and supporting Taiwan’s inde- in 2020. have lived under threat of
island and incursions by legislators Ker Chien-ming, pendence, China’s official Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry Chinese attack for more
navy ships and warplanes Koo Li-hsiung, Tsai Chi- Xinhua News Agency said. tweeted its appreciation than seven decades.q
Gates eyes partnership with South Korea over global health

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) vent infectious diseases like Representing the Bill and bution program that distrib- build more partnership, we
— Bill Gates on Tuesday COVID-19 as he stressed Melinda Gates Foundation, utes COVID-19 vaccines to need to encourage the
called for South Korea to the need for the world to Gates signed a memoran- lower-income nations. scientists,” Gates said in his
become more involved in be better prepared for the dum of understanding with Speaking to South Korean speech at the National As-
international efforts to pre- next pandemic. South Korea’s foreign and lawmakers in Seoul, Gates sembly. “But I am confident
health ministries pledg- called for stronger interna- that with these steps we
ing further partnerships in tional cooperation, includ- can continue to radically
projects aimed at improv- ing efforts to develop vac- improve global health, to
ing public health tools in cines that would be effec- cut the number of children
the developing world and tive for a broader range of dying in half again, to erad-
advancing vaccines and coronaviruses, to navigate icate diseases like polio,
treatments for infectious what he described as a measles and malaria, and
diseases. “crisis moment” in global improve the lives of all hu-
Seoul also promised stron- health. mans.”
ger support for key proj- He noted South Korea’s Gates later met South Kore-
ects backed by the Gates strength in public health an President Yoon Suk Yeol,
foundation, including the tools, research and vac- who described govern-
Global Fund, which fo- cine manufacturing and ment plans to promote the
cuses on HIV, tuberculo- praised the country’s country’s bio-health indus-
sis and malaria, and the pledge to donate $200 mil- try and expressed a willing-
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, shakes hands with non-profit groups CEPI and lion to COVAX. ness to further cooperate
Bill Gates before a meeting at the presidential office in Seoul, GAVI, which along with the “There’s a lot we need to with the Gates foundation
South Korea, Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2022. World Health Organization do together - we need to to “improve the health of
Associated Press co-lead the COVAX distri- reach deep, we need to global citizens.”q