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BEIJING, Jan. 3 (AP) — Beijing has slammed a COVID-19 testing requirement imposed on passengers from China and has threatened retaliation against countries including the United States and several European countries.
“We believe that some countries’ entry restriction measures against China lack scientific basis, and some drastic measures are even more unacceptable,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning told a regular news conference on Tuesday.
“We firmly oppose attempts to manipulate COVID measures for political purposes and will take countermeasures based on the principle of reciprocity,” she said.
Australia and Canada this week joined a growing list of countries requiring travelers from China to undergo a COVID-19 test before boarding a flight, as China abruptly eased most of its pandemic restrictions following a nationwide Fight against the coronavirus outbreak.
Other countries, including the United States, Britain, India, Japan and several European countries, have announced tougher COVID-19 measures for Chinese tourists, citing concerns over a lack of data on infections in China and fears that new variants could spread.
China adopted a “zero COVID” strategy for much of the pandemic, imposing draconian restrictions aimed at stamping out the virus, only to ease them abruptly in December.
Chinese authorities have previously said that from January 8, foreign travelers will no longer need to be quarantined when entering the country, paving the way for Chinese residents to travel. (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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