COVID case in Blinken press curtails his Southeast Asia tour
ABC News
A positive COVID-19 test among U.S. Secretary of State Blinken’s traveling party has cut short the top diplomat’s first official tour of Southeast Asia
BANGKOK -- A positive COVID-19 test among U.S. Secretary of State Blinken’s traveling party has cut short the top diplomat’s first official tour of Southeast Asia.
A member of the press corps accompanying Blinken on what was to have been a three-nation visit to Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand tested positive for the coronavirus on Wednesday in Kuala Lumpur, forcing Blinken to abandon the program at his next and last stop in Bangkok, and return to the United States.
Instead of spending Wednesday night in Bangkok, Blinken flew to the Thai capital for a brief logistical layover before traveling to Guam to refuel and then continuing on to Hawaii. At the airport in Bangkok, at least two Thai ground crew members were seen wearing full protective gear as they serviced Blinken's plane.
The abrupt change in plans was caused in part by fears that others in the delegation might also test positive, requiring them to quarantine in Thailand over the Christmas holiday.
