MOFA Minister Wu meets with US Department of HHS Secretary Azar

2020/08/13

Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaushieh Joseph Wu met with Alex Azar, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Aug. 11 in Taipei City, highlighting the government’s commitment to working with like-minded partners on disease prevention and Taiwan’s participation in international health affairs.
 
According to Wu, Taiwan’s success in containing COVID-19 can be attributed to early deployment of resources, quick responses by related agencies and lessons learned from the 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome. Taiwan has shown the world how an open society can employ transparency to better combat the virus, he added.
 
 Countries cannot fight the battle alone, the minister said, adding that Taiwan has donated 51 million surgical masks—including more than 10 million to the U.S—and other personal protective equipment to ensure the safety of front-line medical personnel around the world.
 
 Wu thanked the U.S. for supporting Taiwan’s international participation and said the fight is about more than the country’s status. “Taiwan must win these battles so democracy prevails,” he said.
 
 Echoing Wu’s remarks, Azar brought greetings from U.S. President Trump and said the U.S. believes Taiwan should be recognized for its accomplishments.
 
 Taiwan should be able to share its experience and world-class expertise in international forums, Azar said, adding that he had made that point repeatedly at the World Health Organization.
 
“We will continue advocating for the contributions Taiwan can make to the world on important issues like health,” he said.
 
 Leading a U.S. delegation that arrived in Taiwan Aug. 9, Azar is the highest ranking U.S. Cabinet member to visit the county since 1979, as well as the first Cabinet official to make the trip in six years.

Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/index.php)