MOFA defends ads in German newspaper published by scandal-hit MP
03/15/2021 05:58 PM
KMT lawmaker Chen I-hsin speaks to reporters at Legislative Yuan on Monday. CNA photo March 15, 2021
Taipei, March 15 (CNA) Taiwan s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has defended its advertising in the Südthüringen Kurier, a newspaper in the German state of Thuringia, after it was accused of placing the ads out of political considerations.
It said Sunday that the ads were part of efforts by its overseas offices to promote Taiwan and were not placed for political purposes or to favor local politicians, and it called allegations by an opposition lawmaker regrettable.
As the whole nation prepares to go the the polls in September, the CDU is reeling from its “worst-ever election result” in the southwestern states of Baden-Wurttemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate, where the centre-right party has “historically enjoyed firm support”, says the BBC.
In Baden-Wurttemberg, the Green Party is on track to retain power with around 32% of the vote, with the CDU expected to get just 24%. And in neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate, the centre-left Social Democrats are projected to hold on to power with about 35%, with the CDU winning 27% of the vote despite having led in opinion polls.
The elections took place on Sunday amid a “growing scandal over lawmakers who accepted kickbacks for selling masks” while supplies of PPE were in short supply across Germany, The New York Times reports.
Europe’s biggest countries, including Germany and France, suspended use of AstraZeneca Plc’s Covid-19 vaccine amid a growing health scare that’s creating yet another delay for the European Union’s inoculation campaign.
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