Summary:
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Following Beijing’s announcement that it would reopen its borders next month, the US is considering placing new COVID restrictions on Chinese visitors.
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After India, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Malaysia announced stricter rules, Italy said Wednesday that it plans to make testing mandatory.
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“Authorities in Milan, Italy, are already screening passengers on aircraft coming from China.
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“Germany and the UK have stated that they are closely observing the situation but are not considering further restrictions for Chinese travellers now.
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Beijing reported a few deaths and around 4,000 new Covid infections daily last week.
After Beijing said it would open its borders again next month, the US is considering imposing new COVID restrictions on Chinese visitors.
As cases of the virus rise in China, American officials claim that this is because there is a lack of transparency surrounding it.
After India, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Malaysia announced stricter rules, Italy said on Wednesday that it plans to make testing mandatory.
Beijing argued that the introduction of coronavirus regulations should be “scientific.”
Authorities in Milan, Italy, are already screening passengers on aircraft coming from China.
On one flight that arrived at the city’s Malpensa Airport on Christmas Day, 52% of the passengers tested positive for COVID, according to la Repubblica.
Officials have not yet commented on these numbers. Still, health minister Orazio Schillaci stated that he had mandated COVID-19 testing for all travelers from China who were traveling through Italy.
To “defend the Italian population,” he said, it was “necessary to ensure the surveillance and identification” of any new viral variations.
During the first COVID outbreak in Italy in 2020, the northern region of Lombardy, near Malpensa Airport, was the world’s epicenter for a short time. The virus had come from China.
While member states had earlier this year agreed to lift COVID travel restrictions, a spokeswoman for the EU’s Foreign Affairs said there was an understanding that, if necessary, they might be reinstalled in a coordinated manner.
She also said that the BF7 omicron form, which is common in China, was already there in Europe but hadn’t been able to take over.
Individuals in China who want to go abroad can once again apply for passports starting on January 8, according to the nation’s immigration authorities.
Some countries are worried that COVID could spread because more people are going to travel websites.
“There are growing worries in the international community about the continuous COVID-19 surges in China and the lack of clear data, especially viral genome sequence data,” US authorities told news organizations.
Chinese hurry to book travel as Covid regulations are eased as China prepares to reopen to the world in January
Wang Wenbin, who works for China’s foreign ministry, later said that Western countries and the media had “hyped up” and “distorted” China’s changes to its COVID policy.
He stated that China thought all nations’ responses to COVID should be “science-based and balanced” and shouldn’t “impact normal people-to-people exchange.”
Mr. Wang called for “common efforts to promote economic recovery and growth, keep global industrial supply chains stable, and make sure that travel across borders is safe.”
Germany and the UK have said they are keeping a close eye on the situation, but they are not considering putting more restrictions on Chinese travelers now.
According to a Downing Street official, the number of cases in Britain is still “quite modest.”
However, “there was no sign that a more harmful mutation [of COVID] had developed,” according to a German health ministry official.
Officials in China have stopped giving out the needed information, so no one knows how many people get sick and die every day. According to reports, hospitals are overburdened and senior citizens are dying.
Beijing reported a few deaths and around 4,000 new COVID infections per day last week.
People were highly discouraged from traveling overseas before the liberalization of travel regulations. Selling outbound group and package trips were prohibited, according to marketing solutions provider Dragon Trail International.
Chinese media reported that data from the travel website Trip.com showed that searches for well-known places had increased by ten times compared to the same time last year within 30 minutes of the news that China’s borders would open on Monday.
Macau, Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand, and South Korea were the most popular locations.
On Wednesday, John Lee, the leader of Hong Kong, said that most of the remaining COVID rules would be thrown out immediately, except for the rule about wearing a face mask, which will still be enforced.
Mr. Lee says that the city has a high vaccination rate, making it harder for diseases to spread.
International visitors must still provide their COVID vaccination documentation before entering the US.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website also suggests that anyone visiting the US get a COVID test in advance and have their results on hand, but this is not required by law.
In their statement, the anonymous US officials also said they were “talking with partners” and “following the science and recommendations of public health experts.”
China has eased travel restrictions, which was the last part of the country’s controversial “zero-corruption” policy. This comes after weeks of unrest, during which citizens took to the streets in unusual protests against President Xi Jinping and his government.
Analysis by: Advocacy Unified Network
