reuters.com <https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-masks/accused-of-piracy-u-s-denies-diverting-masks-bound-for-germany-idUSKBN21O0Y0>
Accused of 'piracy', U.S. denies diverting masks bound for Germany Patpicha Tanakasempipat 3 minutes _____ BANGKOK (Reuters) - The United States had no knowledge of a shipment of face masks bound for Germany that officials in Berlin have accused it of diverting from an airport in Bangkok, a spokeswoman for the U.S. embassy in Thailand said. A screenshot of the Facebook page of the Governing Mayor of Berlin, Germany April 4, 2020 shows the statment of the Mayor Michael Mueller on 200,000 masks bound for Germany from a 3M factory in China that were “confiscated” in Bangkok and diverted to the US. The Governing Mayor of Berlin/Handout via REUTERS The comment came after Berlin Secretary of Interior Andreas Geisel said on Friday that an order of 200,000 masks bound for Germany had been “confiscated” in Bangkok and diverted to the United States, calling it an “act of modern piracy”. “The United States Government did not take any action to divert any 3M supplies that were destined to Germany nor did we have any knowledge of such a shipment,” Jillian Bonnardeaux, the spokeswoman for the U.S. embassy in Bangkok, told Reuters. “We remain concerned about pervasive attempts to divide international efforts through unsourced, unattributed disinformation campaigns.” Thai authorities were not reachable on Monday as the country was observing a public holiday. The accusation that masks were diverted came at a time when countries are scrambling to secure protective gear to battle the coronavirus pandemic. Allies of the United States from Europe to South America have complained about “Wild West” tactics they say Washington has employed to outbid or block shipments of medical supplies to original buyers. Globally, there were more than 1.25 million cases of coronavirus and 68,400 deaths across 211 countries and territories, as of Monday morning, according to a Reuters tally. Although Germany’s Geisel said on Friday the consignment had been “confiscated” in Bangkok, his office rowed back a day later, saying it was still trying to clarify the circumstances of how the masks, which were ordered from a German wholesaler, and not from U.S. manufacturer 3M [MMM.N], had been diverted. A spokeswoman for 3M had told Reuters the company had no evidence that its products had been seized. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that “there has been no act of piracy”. Reporting by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by Matthew Tostevin and Gareth Jones -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "SERBIAN NEWS NETWORK" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/senet/00c101d60c2a%2416d2ecd0%244478c670%24%40gmail.com.
