Biden flies to Asia for G20 summit, Vietnam stop after near-miss with COVID-19

President Biden departed Thursday for the G20 summit in India and a stop in Vietnam after testing negative for COVID-19.

The virus loomed over Mr. Biden’s plans this week after first lady Jill Biden tested positive over the Labor Day weekend and stayed behind in Delaware.

The White House said Mr. Biden has tested negative repeatedly, including Thursday before takeoff.

Mr. Biden was accompanied on Air Force One by key aides, including National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and Deputy Chief of Staff Jen O’Malley Dillon.

Mr. Biden will arrive in New Delhi on Friday and hold a bilateral meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The weekend summit with global economic powers will likely focus on the war in Ukraine, economic development, climate change, and other challenges.

“As we head into New Delhi, our focus is going to be on delivering for developing countries, making progress on key priorities for the American people — from climate to technology — and showing our commitment to the G20 as a forum that can actually, as I said before, deliver,” Mr. Sullivan told reporters earlier in the week.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has decided to skip the event, however, a notable snub amid friction with the West.

Mr. Biden will travel Sunday to Vietnam, an emerging trade partner in Asia, to meet with Nguyen Phu Trọng, the general secretary of the country’s Communist Party, and hold a press conference.

He will travel to Anchorage, Alaska, and mark the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks with military members instead of the 2001 attack sites in Washington, New York or Pennsylvania.

Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff will attend a ceremony at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum in New York City on Monday, while Mrs. Biden is scheduled to lay a wreath at the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial.

For more information, visit The Washington Times COVID-19 resource page.