BEIJING/SEOUL: The Chinese embassy in South Korea has suspended issuing short-term visas for South Korean visitors, it said on Tuesday, the first retaliatory move against nations imposing Covid-19 curbs on travellers from China.
The embassy will adjust the policy subject to the lifting of South Korea’s “discriminatory entry restrictions” against China, it said on its official WeChat account.
A Chinese embassy official confirmed the new measures.
The announcement comes a day after Foreign Minister Qin Gang expressed concern about the restrictions in a telephone call with his South Korean counterpart Park Jin, according to China’s foreign ministry.
South Korea’s Park told Qin the new border restrictions were “science-based” measures, according to his office.
Last week, South Korean police tracked down a Chinese man who went missing while awaiting quarantine after having tested positive for COVID-19 upon arrival.
The incident raised concern about the spread of the virus from China after Beijing abruptly abandoned its tough “zero-COVID” policy and opened its borders despite widespread domestic infections.
South Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol said on Monday the country’s border measures should focus strictly on the safety of its citizens.