China reopens to South Korean visitors, ending Covid-19 tit-for-tat
- Short-term visas will once again be available from Saturday, the Chinese embassy in Seoul has announced
- The decision follows hard on the heels of Seoul’s decision to lift restrictions on arrivals from China
According to Seoul, the number of Covid-19 infections among Chinese arrivals has dropped significantly and the cases include only known variants of the virus.
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South Korean street vendors eagerly await Chinese tourists amid tit-for-tat Covid travel measures
Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning last week described Seoul’s lifting of visa restrictions as “a step in the right direction”.
“China will actively consider the resumption of short-term visas for South Korean citizens on a reciprocal basis. We hope that the Republic of Korea will work with China to make the normal flow of people between the two sides more convenient,” she said on Friday.
A national wave of infections and deaths quickly followed, prompting some countries to impose travel restrictions, such as compulsory testing, on visitors from China out of concern for new variants.
Both Tokyo and Seoul imposed visa restrictions, and Beijing retaliated by halting short-term visas for South Korean and Japanese visitors on January 10.
