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The Chinese government has taken advantage of a schedule delay during Vice President Kamala Harris’s ongoing trip to Vietnam to undermine the White House’s planned awareness of the COVID-19 vaccine supply, according to a report released Wednesday.
Harris was expected to announce a US donation of one million doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine as part of a larger effort to cultivate closer ties with Vietnam and counter Beijing’s influence in the region.
When Harris’ team was delayed three hours before their scheduled meeting with Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc, China sent its own diplomat to meet Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and offer two million doses of the vaccine, a reported the Washington Post.
The Vietnamese prime minister thanked the Beijing diplomat and said Vietnam “does not ally with one country to fight against another,” according to Vietnamese state media.
The White House could not be reached immediately for comment on the report.
China donated its two million doses to the Vietnamese military, while the US donation was intended for the general population of the country. In total, the United States donated six million doses to Vietnam.
Beijing’s last-minute decision was the latest sign of the growing geopolitical rivalry between the United States and China. Harris called on Vietnam to join the Biden administration in thwarting China’s efforts to expand its influence in the South China Sea despite international opposition.
“We need to find ways to pressure and increase the pressure, frankly, on Beijing to respect the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and challenge its bullying and excessive maritime claims,” Harris said. during a meeting.
Harris has expressed support for the deployment of another US Coast Guard vessel to help defend Vietnam’s interests in the South China Sea. She added that the United States would “maintain a strong presence” in the region.
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Harris’s flight to Vietnam was delayed for a few hours on Tuesday due to concerns over a possible case of “Havana Syndrome,” a mysterious illness that has already sickened more than 200 U.S. government officials around the world, according to CIA Director William Burns. Earlier this week, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the case was not yet confirmed.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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