More U.S. Diplomats with Medical Problems in China

On June 29, the U.S. State Department announced that another six U.S. diplomats or family members had been evacuated from the U.S. Consulate in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, after experiencing “abnormal sounds or sensations, and apparently taken for evaluation to the University of Pennsylvania for medical evaluation. This brings the total of such evacuations to eight. The problems in Guangzhou did not occur at the Consulate, but at an apartment tower in the city where a number of consulate employees live.[1]

In addition, the U. S. disclosed that one employee from the its consulate in Shanghai and two from the U.S. Embassy in Beijing also had been sent to the U.S. for further medical tests., bringing the overall total of such evacuations from China to 11.

These problems in China appear to be similar to the medical problems of at least 26 U.S. diplomats and members of their families in Havana, Cuba.[2]

The website for the U.S. Embassy in Beijing China released a statement that on June 28 Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke by phone with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi. After sentences about their discussion about their “shared goal of the complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” it said they “discussed ongoing cooperation on the recent health related incident in Guangzhou, China.”[3]

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[1] Myers, More Americans Evacuated From Chins Over Mysterious Ailments, N.Y. Times (June 30, 2018).  See also previous posts to dwkcommentaries.com: U.S. Establishes Task Force To Coordinate Response to Health Problems of U.S. Diplomats in Cuba and China (June 5, 2018); Comment: More U.S. Diplomats Report Illness in China (June 6, 2018);Comment: China Pledges to Investigate Sonic Attacks on U.S. Diplomats (June 7, 2018); Comment: U.S. Broadens Health Alert to All Americans in China (June 8, 2018).

[2] See posts to dwkcommentaries.com listed in the “U.S. Diplomats Medical Problems in Cuba, 2017-18” section of List of Posts to dwkcommentaries—Topical: CUBA.

[3] U.S. Embassy & Consulates in China, Secretary Pompeo’s Call with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi (June 28, 2018).

 

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As a retired lawyer and adjunct law professor, Duane W. Krohnke has developed strong interests in U.S. and international law, politics and history. He also is a Christian and an active member of Minneapolis’ Westminster Presbyterian Church. His blog draws from these and other interests. He delights in the writing freedom of blogging that does not follow a preordained logical structure. The ex post facto logical organization of the posts and comments is set forth in the continually being revised “List of Posts and Comments–Topical” in the Pages section on the right side of the blog.

One thought on “More U.S. Diplomats with Medical Problems in China”

  1. Another U.S. Diplomat from Beijing Embassy Evacuated

    On July 3, the U.S. annonced that another U.S. citizen working at the Embassy in Beijing had reported medical problems and had been evacuated for evaluation at the University of Pennsylvania.

    This brings the total of such evacuations from China to 12 (Guangzho, 8 + Shanghi, 1 + Beijing, 3). All have reported symptoms, including headaches, sleep impairment and various cognitive issues.

    China’s Foreign Ministry said it has investigated the phenomenon, but hasn’t found a cause.

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    Chen, As ‘Health Attacks’ Persist, U.S. Pulls More Americans Out of China, W.S.J. (July 3, 2018), https://www.wsj.com/articles/as-health-attacks-persist-u-s-takes-more-americans-out-of-china-1530616466.

    Reply

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