US ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield has condemned China’s use of its COVID-19 vaccines as a source of diplomatic pressure on Taiwan’s allies.
Thomas-Greenfield was speaking Wednesday during a hearing held by the US House of Representatives’ Foreign Affairs Committee.
She gave Taiwan’s diplomatic ally Haiti as an example of a country China has put under heavy pressure with this “vaccine diplomacy”.
During the meeting, Representative Peter Meijer asked Thomas-Greenfield how the US can use its position of leadership in the UN to resist China’s malicious behavior, weaken China’s silencing of those who oppose it, ensure freedom of speech, and safeguard the independence and objectivity of international organizations.
Thomas-Greenfield said that the US must help countries unable to withstand Chinese pressure, including those who have fallen into debt due to Chinese projects like its “One Belt, One Road” program.
She also said that the US should back Taiwan’s participation in UN-affiliated events. She said that for instance, the US should back Taiwan’s participation in the World Health Assembly as an observer.