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    US diplomats scrap trips to Europe, Taiwan after Capitol invasion

    by Jacob Fromer Jan 13, 2021 1 minute

    The US State Department said on Tuesday that it would call off all of its travel for the final eight days of the Trump administration, a sudden change of plans that the department said was needed in order to support the transition to the incoming Biden administration.

    The State Department said the order applies to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's upcoming trip to Europe, but did not immediately respond to a query seeking to confirm if it also applies to UN ambassador Kelly Craft's planned trip to Taiwan from January 13 to 15.

    Voice of America's Chinese service said on Twitter that Bi-khim Hsiao, who heads the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (Tecro) in Washington, confirmed that Craft's trip was cancelled.

    Get the latest insights and analysis from our Global Impact newsletter on the big stories originating in China.

    "We are cancelling all planned travel this week, including the Secretary's trip to Europe," department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement.

    Last Thursday, the Trump administration announced that Craft would be travelling to Taipei to meet senior Taiwanese leaders from January 13 to 15.

    The Chinese government, which sees Taiwan as a breakaway province and opposes official visits between the US and Taipei, said after Thursday's announcement that the US was "playing with fire" by sending Craft there.

    This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

    Copyright (c) 2021. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

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