China has stopped issuing short-term visas to South Koreans, its embassy said, after Seoul imposed travel restrictions on travelers from China amid concerns about the outbreak of COVID-19 in the country, APA reports citing Kyodo News.
It is Beijing’s first retaliatory move against countries that have introduced new measures on arrivals from China, which suddenly abandoned its strict zero-COVID policy in December, resulting in the virus spreading rapidly.
The announcement comes a day after Chinese 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 “based on science and objective”, according to his office.
“Chinese embassies and consulates in Korea will suspend the issuance of short-term visas for Korean citizens,” the Chinese embassy in Seoul announced, adding that the measures would be “adjusted again in line with South Korea’s removal of the discriminatory entry restrictions on China”.
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