Chinese Foreign Minister: "Korea-Japan Measures Are Discriminatory and Unscientific... There Is Reason to Respond"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] Qin Gang, the new Chinese Foreign Minister, recently stated on the 12th that "China has reasons to respond" regarding the suspension of visa issuance to South Korea and Japan.

According to a video from Phoenix Satellite TV on the same day, Qin, who is currently touring Africa, responded to a reporter's question about the reason for suspending visa issuance to South Korean and Japanese nationals by saying, "The measures taken by South Korea and Japan regarding Chinese citizens' tourism to their countries are discriminatory, unscientific, and excessive." He added, "This causes difficulties and obstacles in people-to-people exchanges between the two countries (South Korea-China and China-Japan)," and asserted, "China has reasons to respond."

After China transitioned to a 'With COVID' policy last month, confirmed cases surged, prompting South Korea and Japan to mandate COVID-19 testing before departure for travelers from China due to concerns over the introduction of new variant viruses. If travelers from China test positive upon arrival, they are subject to facility quarantine. South Korea has also restricted the issuance of short-term visas to China with a first deadline at the end of this month.

Accordingly, on the 10th, China significantly suspended visa issuance to South Korea and Japan (short-term visas for South Korea, general visas for Japan), and on the 11th, it imposed a second retaliatory measure only on the two countries. The main points are excluding transit passengers at Chinese airports from the 3-day or 6-day visa-free stay program and suspending the issuance of visas on arrival.

However, as major countries such as the United States and the European Union (EU) are strengthening COVID-19 testing for travelers from China, there are criticisms that it is unreasonable to suspend visa issuance only for South Korea and Japan.

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