Travel restrictions imposed by several countries on Chinese arrivals could trigger retaliation, China has warned.
England, the US, India and Australia are among the nations that have introduced mandatory Covid testing for travellers from China as the country opens up its borders from January 8 for the first time since the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
The European Commission has said an overwhelming number of member states favour introducing travel restrictions. Some have already brought in their own measures but a decision on whether that will be extended to all EU countries is expected today (Wednesday).
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Nervousness about a surge in Covid cases following the easing of strict controls in China has led to more than a dozen nations introducing testing on travellers from the country.
But Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a press briefing that the government was “firmly opposed to attempts to manipulate the epidemic prevention and control measures for political purposes, and will take corresponding measures…according to the principle of reciprocity”.
Countries imposing new requirements for negative tests on arrivals from China fear that cases and deaths in the country with a population of 1.4 billion are being underreported.
Asked yesterday if travellers arriving in the UK from China who tested positive for Covid would be required to quarantine, transport secretary, Mark Harper, told LBC: “No, because what we are doing is we are collecting that information for surveillance purposes.
He added: “We manage Covid now by making sure we have got very high levels of vaccination, that is why people who are at risk, older members of the community, for example, should make sure they get their fourth booster shot this winter. That is how we protect people from Covid, that is our primary line of defence.
“The policy for arrivals from China is primarily about collecting information that the Chinese government are not sharing with the international community.”
However, New Zealand said it would not require travellers from China to produce a negative Covid test.
Covid-19 response minister Ayesha Verrall told local media there was minimal public health risk to New Zealand.
She said: “Officials have done a public health risk assessment, including working through scenarios of potential case numbers among travellers from China. This confirmed these visitors won’t contribute significantly to our Covid case numbers meaning entry restrictions aren’t required or justified.”
Iata response
Iata director general Willie Walsh hit out at the “knee-jerk” response from some countries.
He said: “Several countries are introducing Covid-19 testing and other measures for travellers from China, even though the virus is already circulating widely within their borders. It is extremely disappointing to see this knee-jerk reinstatement of measures that have proven ineffective over the last three years.
“Research undertaken around the arrival of the Omicron variant concluded that putting barriers in the way of travel made no difference to the peak spread of infections. At most, restrictions delayed that peak by a few days. If a new variant emerges in any part of the world, the same situation would be expected.
“That’s why governments should listen to the advice of experts, including the WHO, that advise against travel restrictions.
“We have the tools to manage Covid-19 without resorting to ineffective measures that cut off international connectivity, damage economies and destroy jobs. Governments must base their decisions on ‘science facts’ rather than ‘science politics’.”
Airports body ACI Europe yesterday criticised unilateral action by countries to require testing for arriving airline passengers from China as “being at odds with the evidence” gained over the past three years.
More: China to end Covid quarantine for inbound travellers
England to require negative Covid tests for travellers from China
Pre-departure Covid tests from China ‘at odds’ with evidence, airports body claims