Despite China's Backlash... The World 'Soksok' Closes Its Gates

Mandatory Submission of Negative Test Certificates for Arrivals from China Starting the 5th
Enhanced Quarantine Measures Targeting China in 14 Countries Including the US and Japan

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] As COVID-19 rapidly spreads in China, quarantine measures against arrivals from China are becoming increasingly stringent.

Starting from the 5th, all Korean and foreign nationals boarding flights from China to Korea must submit a certificate proving a negative PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test result within 48 hours or a professional rapid antigen test (RAT) result within 24 hours. From the 7th, arrivals from Hong Kong and Macau will also be required to undergo COVID-19 testing before entry.

This measure is in consideration of the surge in COVID-19 infections in China. Although 7,689 new confirmed cases were reported in China the previous day, the World Health Organization (WHO) has pointed out that China is underreporting the number of confirmed cases, severe patients, and deaths. On the same day, according to AFP and other news agencies, experts suggested that about 70% of the residents in Shanghai, China's "economic capital" with a population of 25 million, may have already been infected with COVID-19.

It was also confirmed that over the past week, the proportion of confirmed cases entering Korea from overseas who arrived from China exceeded 40%. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) on the previous day, among the total 587 confirmed COVID-19 cases imported from overseas since the 29th of last month until that day, 246 cases, or 41.9%, were arrivals from China. The proportion of China-origin cases among imported cases was only 1.1% in November last year but rose to about 17% in December as the COVID-19 situation in China worsened.

Within China, there appears to be backlash against the high-intensity quarantine measures targeting their country. Recently, on Baidu, China's largest portal site, and social networking services (SNS), there have been reports of a flood of criticism from Chinese people regarding Korea's quarantine policies. There are even signs of a Korean boycott movement urging people to refrain from traveling to Korea or purchasing products from Korean companies.

Mao Ning, spokesperson for China, said at a regular briefing on the 3rd, "Some countries imposing entry restrictions solely on China lack scientific grounds, and some excessive methods are even more unacceptable," adding, "We will take corresponding measures based on the principle of reciprocity depending on the situation."

However, not only Korea but more than 14 countries worldwide have already strengthened quarantine regulations for arrivals from China. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has mandated the submission of negative COVID-19 test certificates for travelers from China starting from this day.

The European Union (EU) has also strongly recommended all 27 member countries to introduce pre-entry COVID-19 testing measures for arrivals from China. In addition, Japan, Taiwan, and India have announced quarantine regulation policies for arrivals from China.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.