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WORLD NEWS Thursday 14 January 2021
U.S. cancels ambassador’s controversial trip to Taiwan

By HUIZHONG WU ers have contact with their people a renegade prov-
Associated Press Taiwanese counterparts. ince that should be brought
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The Under the Trump admin- under its rule.
U.S. State Department can- istration and bipartisan Under the “One China”
celed the planned Taiwan support from Congress, policy, the U.S. recognizes
visit by its U.N. ambassa- relations with Taiwan has Beijing as the government
dor that has drawn strong warmed up considerably, of China and doesn’t have
opposition and a warning with the government in- diplomatic relations with
from China. creasing the frequency Taiwan. However, it main-
The department an- and quality of weapons tains unofficial contacts in-
nounced it was canceling sales to the island’s govern- cluding a de facto embas-
all senior-level overseas ment. Craft herself had a sy in Taipei, the capital, and
travels, including Secretary public lunch with Taiwan’s supplies military equipment
of State Mike Pompeo’s top official in New York, for the island’s defense.
planned trip to Belgium, in James K.J. Lee, director of In Beijing, the Cabinet’s Tai-
a decision to assist with the the Taipei Economic and wan Affairs Office declined
transition to the next ad- Cultural Office in New York, to say whether the cancel-
ministration. a meeting she called “his- lation of Craft’s visit was a
U.S. Ambassador to the toric.” positive sign for China-U.S.
U.N. Kelly Craft was due She would have been the relations.
to begin a three-day visit third high-level U.S. official “Our position is very clear.
Wednesday, which would to visit Taiwan in recent We resolutely oppose all of-
have involved meetings In this Dec. 5, 2019, file photo, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Kelly months. In August last year, ficial exchanges between
with Taiwan’s President Tsai Craft attends a luncheon with President Donald Trump and U.S. Health Secretary Alex the U.S. side and the Tai-
Ing-wen and Foreign Min- members of the United Nations Security Council in the Cabinet Azar became the highest- wan area, demand the U.S.
ister Joseph Wu as well as Room at the White House in Washington. level U.S. Cabinet official to immediately cease their
delivering a speech. Associated Press visit since the U.S. switched wrong approach,” spokes-
Craft’s trip was one of two wan as part of its territory. in response to the planned formal relations from Tai- person Zhu Fenglian told re-
moves in the twilight days The U.S. and China have visit. wan to China in 1979. porters at a biweekly news
of the Trump administration clashed on everything from It follows an announcement Taiwan is a sensitive issue briefing.
that increases official ex- the origins of the pandemic from Pompeo on Saturday for China’s ruling Commu- An expert said the visit
changes with the self-ruled to Hong Kong. China had that the U.S. would remove nist Party, which considers would have also presented

island while also provoking already warned the U.S. longstanding restrictions on the self-governing island a dilemma for the Taiwan-
China, which claims Tai- would pay a “heavy price” how its diplomats and oth- democracy of 23.6 million ese government.q

Survey finds global mistrust could weigh on vaccine rollout

By PAN PYLAS ing mistrust that could over vaccines remains a just 15% of people sur- were recorded in India,
Associated Press make longer the path out major hurdle for their suc- veyed willing to get vac- with 51% looking forward
(AP) — Waning trust in gov- from the pandemic. cessful rollout. cinated as soon as pos- to taking up the vaccine
ernments and all types of “This is the era of informa- Across the 28 countries as- sible and only a further 25% opportunity immediately
media is threatening to tion bankruptcy,” said sessed, it found that as of comfortable with the idea and a further 29% within
limit the rollout of corona- Richard Edelman, CEO of November only a little be- of doing so within a year. In a year, for a total of 80%.
virus vaccines around the Edelman. low two-thirds of respon- the U.S., it found a total of Governments and health
world, particularly in the He said last week’s storm- dents said they would be 59% of people were willing practitioners around the
United States, according ing of the Capitol build- willing to take the vaccine to get vaccinated within a world will be hoping that
to a survey conducted by ing in Washington and the within a year. year with just 33% happy to skeptics will be won over
communications firm Edel- fact that only a third of That hesitancy was most do so as soon as possible. by a smooth rollout of the
man. people are willing to get a prevalent in Russia, with The highest levels of trust vaccines. q
In an annual assessment COVID-19 vaccine straight
on the state of trust in insti- away “crystallize the dan-
tutions, the firm found that gers of misinformation.”
this “infodemic” is breed- The firm found skepticism

A woman wearing a face mask to help curb the spread of the
coronavirus rides a subway car in Moscow, Russia, Monday,
Jan. 11, 2021.
Associated Press