U.S. Health Secretary Alex Azar offered President Donald Trump's strong support for democraticTaiwan today, telling President Tsai Ing-wen that hergovernment's response to the coronavirus pandemic had been among the world's best, Reuters reports. "It's a true honor to be here to convey a message of strong support and friendship from President Trump to Taiwan," Azar told Tsai in the Presidential Office, standing in front of two Taiwanese flags. Azar is visiting to strengthen economic and public-health cooperation with Taiwan and support Taiwan's international role in fighting the pandemic. Tsai told Azar his visit represented "a huge step forward in anti-pandemic collaborations between our countries", mentioning areas of cooperation including vaccine and drug research and production. The decision to bar Taiwan from participating in the WHA is a violation of theuniversal rights to health," Tsai said.

Source: The Standard August 10, 2020 03:22 UTC