[The Epoch Times, 27 dicembre 2022](Full report by Epoch Times reporter Zhang Ting) ChinaepidemicThe speed of the spread has caused concern in neighboring countries. With Chinese authorities announcing they will open the border from January 8,JapanPrime MinisterFumio KishidaOn Tuesday (Dec. 27), it said it will require travelers from mainland China or who have been to mainland China in the past seven days to be tested for the virus upon arrival in Japan.
JapanPrime MinisterFumio KishidaThe policy will go into effect on December 30, he told reporters in Tokyo on Tuesday. Those travelers who have been to mainland China within seven days and all travelers from mainland China will need to undergo a virus test in Japan upon arrival, he said, adding that those who test positive will be quarantined for a week.
Fumio Kishida: Entrance controls will be tightened to prevent a sharp increase in the influx of viruses
All positive tests will undergo genomic analysis to determine if new variants of the virus have been detected.
“To avoid a sharp increase in new cases entering Japan, we are focusing on immigration checks and at airports,” said Kishida.
“There is a big discrepancy between the infection case information gathered by central and local governments and the government and private sector, so it’s difficult (for the outside world) to grasp the details,” Kishida said, referring to China. “There are also growing concerns in Japan.”
“We will do everything possible not to disrupt the smooth running of international travel,” said Kishida.
Currently, travelers to Japan do not need to undergo a mandatory test upon entry if they have proof that they received three doses of the COVID-19 vaccine within 72 hours of departure or if they tested negative.
Only Narita, Haneda, Kansai and Chubu international airports accept direct flights from China, Hong Kong and Macau, according to an emailed statement from Japan’s foreign ministry. Airlines will be asked by the government not to increase the number of flights they currently have. Travelers from Hong Kong and Macau will not be subject to testing requirements, the statement said.
epidemicCurrently, Chinese tourists make up the largest travel group in Japan. Japan reopened its borders in October. However, the number of tourists from China to Japan has been slow to recover due to China’s strict border control measures.
According to the Japan Immigration Service, the number of new arrivals from China in November was 17,417, or only about 2 percent of the total, a significant drop from 580,000 in November 2019.
Japan is a top ten destination for Chinese travellers
With China poised to reopen its borders, the Chinese are scrambling to plan overseas trips for the Lunar New Year in late January, according to Trip.com.
Within half an hour of China’s announcement of the policy change, searches for overseas travel rose to a three-year high, the travel booking firm said.
Japan, Thailand, South Korea, the United States, Malaysia, Australia and the United Kingdom rounded out the list of fastest-growing searched destinations outside the mainland, the company said. Macau and Hong Kong also made the list.
India tightens entry requirements for Chinese travellers
Apart from Japan, India’s Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on December 24 that as the government assesses its readiness to deal with the spread of COVID-19, India will force people from China, Japan, South Korea , Hong Kong and Thailand participants must provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test.
Mandavia also said passengers from these areas will be quarantined if they show symptoms of COVID-19 or test positive.
India also started random testing for COVID-19 on 2% of international passengers arriving at airports on Dec. 24.
Mandavia told a parliament on Dec. 22 that the reason for imposing the new rules was a rise in cases in neighboring China.
The US Embassy in China temporarily suspended visa issuance services on December 15. The embassy said this was due to the impact on business operations of a surge of infections across China, but Nikkei Asia said it could also be the embassy’s vigilance over the influx of people infected with the virus into states. United.
Four Chinese people quarantined after arriving in Bangladesh and testing positive
Four travelers returning from China have been placed in quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19, UNB News reported on Dec. 27.
They arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, on Monday afternoon (December 26).
Shahriar Sazzad, deputy director of the airport’s health department, told the UNB: “Because the faces of the four passengers were red, they were tested for antigens and the report came back positive.”
Later, they were taken to Moha Kali Hospital DNCC for isolation treatment, he added.
Responsible editor: Lin Yan#
