Blinken cuts foreign trip short over Covid concerns
In a call with Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai, Blinken “expressed his deep regret” that he would not be traveling on to Bangkok.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken is cutting short his weeklong overseas trip and returning to Washington, D.C., due to reasons related to Covid-19, the State Department announced on Wednesday.
In a call with Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai, Blinken “expressed his deep regret” that he would not be traveling on to Bangkok from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement.
“[Blinken] explained that, in order to mitigate the risk of the spread of COVID-19 and to prioritize the health and safety of the U.S. traveling party and those they would otherwise come into contact with, the Secretary would be returning to Washington, D.C. out of an abundance of caution,” Price said.
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for additional information regarding the change in Blinken’s travel plans.
Blinken departed on his trip abroad last Thursday and has visited the United Kingdom, Indonesia and Malaysia since then. He was still scheduled to travel to Thailand and Hawaii and to conclude his official travel on Friday.