US Meeting with Taiwan 'Provocative': Daily

The planned visit to Taiwan by U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar is "provocative" in a period of sensitive Sino-U.S. relations and the "complex and severe" cross-strait situation, the People's Daily said in a commentary. The visit serves as an attempt by the U.S. to cover up its inefficiency in containing the COVID-19 outbreak and its stalling economy, the Daily said. China urges the U.S. to sever all official ties with Taiwan to prevent a further deterioration in relations, the official newspaper said. Members of Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party are naïve to think that Taiwanese policies and visiting trips by the U.S. would consolidate relationships between the two, said Daily's commentary said.