Blinken ends Southeast Asia trip early after reporter traveling with him tests positive for COVID-19

• Blinken ended a trip to Southeast Asia early after a reporter traveling with him tested positive for COVID-19.
• The top US diplomat skipped a visit to Thailand after traveling to the UK, Indonesia, and Malaysia.
• Blinken and senior staff tested negative on Tuesday, the State Department said.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday abruptly ended a trip to Southeast Asia after a reporter traveling with him tested positive for COVID-19, the State Department said.

“We learned this morning, through our routine PCR testing, that a member of our traveling press pool tested positive for COVID-19 upon arrival in Kuala Lumpur,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said in statement, per The Washington Post. Blinken and senior staff tested negative on Tuesday, Price said.

The reporter will remain in quarantine for at least 10 days before returning to the US. 

“The individual who tested positive will remain in isolation, and we will continue to adhere to and go beyond CDC guidance, including with our rigorous testing protocol, for the remaining traveling party,” Price said. 

Instead of making a scheduled visit to Thailand on Thursday, the top US diplomat headed back to the US after traveling to the UK, Indonesia, and Malaysia in recent days. In a separate statement, Price said that Blinken “expressed his deep regret” to the foreign minister of Thailand that he would not be able to make it to Bangkok. 

“The Secretary extended an invitation for the Foreign Minister to visit Washington, D.C. at the earliest opportunity and noted that he looked forward to traveling to Thailand as soon as possible,” Price added. 

Blinken’s shortened trip comes amid rising concerns over the Omicron variant, which was first detected in the US in mid-November. 

“Omicron is spreading at a rate we have not seen with any previous variant,” World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a press briefing on Tuesday, per CNN. “We’re concerned that people are dismissing Omicron as mild. Surely, we have learned by now that we underestimate this virus at our peril.” 

“Even if Omicron does cause less severe disease, the sheer number of cases could once again overwhelm unprepared health systems,” Tedros added, underscoring that 77 countries have reported cases of the variant. 

The CDC, which recently reported that Omicron accounts for 3% of US cases, is urging people to get vaccinated or a booster as soon as possible.