South Korea hit back on Tuesday claims that their Covid rules for Chinese travelers are “discriminatory,” says that more than half of its imports come from China.
Speaking to CNBC, Seung-ho Choi, deputy director of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that up to 80% of “confirmed cases from abroad” in South Korea come from China.
Choi said the number of people traveling from China who tested positive for Covid-19 increased 14-fold from November to December.
Choi also said that its policies cover “all Korean citizens and non-Korean citizens coming from China. This is not limited to Chinese people. There is no discrimination regarding nationality in this measure.”
Citing South Korea’s proximity to China, Choi said an increase in infections in China could put South Korea at risk.
“China’s COVID-19 situation is still deteriorating… this has created the possibility of detecting new variants,” he said.
The omicron variant swept China in December, after authorities relaxed strict contact-tracing requirements that kept many people close to their homes for nearly three years. As of January 8, Beijing officially eased international border controls, opening the door to more travel in and out of the country.
It is unlikely that the dangerous new Covid variant is spreading in ChinaDr. Chris Murray, director of the center for health research at the University of Washington based in Seattle, told CNBC in late December.
China stops issuing visas
More than a dozen countries have announced New rules for travelers departing from China. Most require travelers departing from China to test negative for Covid prior to arrival – the same requirement China has for international visitors to the mainland.
But South Korea and Japan – two top destinations for Chinese tourists – said they did not increase flights in response to China reopening its borders. South Korea also announced plans to restrict the issuance of short-term visas to visitors from China.
Chinese Embassy in Korea and Japan announced Tuesday that they will stop issuing visas to “Korean citizens” and “Japanese citizens”.
Thai officials greet Chinese passengers at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport on January 9, 2023.
Rachen Sageamsak | Xinhua News Agency | beautiful pictures
Notice of Chinese Embassy in Korea said the rule would apply to tourist, business, medical and “general individual cases” visas and that the rule was made “in accordance with China’s domestic guidelines”, according to a translation of CNBC.
“China resolutely rejects the discriminatory entry restrictions by some countries targeting China and will take reciprocal measures,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said. said Tuesday.
‘Lack of transparency’
Choi of South Korea said that policy decisions were made after “in-depth discussions with relevant government ministries and experts.”
Noting that “the Chinese government has stopped releasing data on daily confirmed cases,” Choi said the measures were “inevitable”.
US State Department spokesman Ned Price said at a news conference on Wednesday that the US is requiring travelers from China to take pre-departure tests because of “contagion” and ” prevalence” of infections in China, “but also because of the lack of complete and transparent epidemiological data and viral genome sequences reported from China.”
“It’s the lack of transparency that makes us concerned about the possibility of a variant emerging in China and potentially spreading beyond its borders,” he said.
‘Very fair’
As a responsible member of the international community, we will share with the world the Covid-19 data we are analyzing.
Seung-ho Choi
Korea Agency for Disease Control and Prevention
However, a financial expert in Shanghai, who asked us to call him Derek, called the Korean restrictions “very fair”.
“None of my friends will be on a flight filled with Covid-positive people,” he said.
Chinese citizen Cheryl Yang said for many people in China, travel is their least concern.
“Many people I know have been sick or [are] “Travel will be a secondary issue at the moment,” she said.
‘Only temporarily’
Choi said South Korea’s new Covid-19 travel restrictions were “only temporary” and were made to “put the highest priority on the health and safety of those residing in South Korea.”
The surge of Covid cases sweeping across China could mean the country can quickly weather the outbreak, allowing the economy to recover quickly – some say, soon especially in the second quarter of 2023.
Noting that China’s reopening process is progressing faster than expected, a report by HSBC Global Research published on January 5 said that “China will overcome the Covid-19 pandemic and recover from the pandemic.” strong recovery from the second quarter of 2023.”
In the meantime, Choi said, “We will do our best to help the world overcome the pandemic.”
“As a responsible member of the international community, we will share with the world the Covid-19 data we are analyzing,” he said.
