Japan, Taiwan to test China arrivals as Covid cases surge

The Japan and Taiwan have announced measures on Wednesday to deal with an expected influx of travellers from China after Beijing said it planned to relax Covid border controls amid a surge of cases in that country.

Meanwhile, the US expressed concerns over virus-related data released by the Chinese government. China has experienced a sharp surge in infections nationwide following an abrupt dismantling of its stringent zero-Covid policy.

“There are mounting concerns in the international community on the ongoing Covid-19 surges in China and the lack of transparent data, including viral genomic sequence data, being reported from the PRC,” they said in a statement late Tuesday.

“Without this data, it is becoming increasingly difficult for public health officials to ensure that they will be able to identify any potential new variants and take prompt measures to reduce the spread.”

They also pointed to measures taken by Japan and Malaysia, and noted that India and the World Health Organization had also expressed concerns.

Japan has introduced measures which require a negative Covid test for travellers arriving from mainland China from December 30.

Those without a valid vaccination certificate will also be required to take a pre-departure test, according to Japan’s health ministry added.

The measures will not apply to those traveling from Hong Kong and Macao.

Taiwan will also conduct Covid tests on visitors arriving from mainland China from January 1, the Centers for Disease Control said.

All passengers arriving on direct flights from China and some by boat will be required to undergo a PCR test. Visitors that test positive will have the option of home isolation, the notice said.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com