Category Archives: China

Labor flags wastewater tests on inbound planes as mandatory Covid checks for China arrivals resumes

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Health minister defends country-specific testing as necessary due to ‘absence of comprehensive information’ on Covid’s spread in China

Australia is planning to introduce wastewater testing for incoming flights in an attempt to gather more information about the possible entry of new Covid variants.

The health minister, Mark Butler, announced the measure on Monday in a round of interviews defending the decision to reimpose pre-flight Covid testing for passengers from China as necessary because of a “absence of comprehensive information” about the disease in China.

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China’s President Xi battles to save face as Covid U-turn weakens his grip on power

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Despite public bullishness, overflowing hospitals across the country suggest its leader may have made a huge miscalculation

China’s leader Xi Jinping told his country it stands on “the right side of history” in a new year address on Saturday, but experts have warned that the president starts 2023 diminished by his chaotic U-turn on Covid strategy.

He may struggle to deflect blame for the human and economic costs of zero-Covid’s failure, and control the national narrative, even if public signs of dissent are crushed.

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Australia imposes mandatory Covid tests for travellers from China amid fears of diplomatic backlash

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Health minister Mark Butler argues decision ‘will not come as any surprise to the Chinese government’

Australia will impose mandatory Covid-19 testing for travellers arriving from China after a spike in cases in the tourism and business market.

The Australian health minister, Mark Butler, announced on Sunday that travellers from China would need to take a Covid test within the 48 hours before travel and show evidence of a negative result before entering Australia, starting from 5 January.

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Xi Jinping urges unity as China’s Covid fight enters ‘new phase’

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Chinese leader speaks of continuing struggles as thousands gather in Wuhan, epicentre of the pandemic three years ago

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for more effort and unity as the country enters a “new phase” in its approach to combating the pandemic, in his first comments to the public on Covid-19 since his government changed course three weeks ago and relaxed its rigorous policy of lockdowns and mass testing.

In a televised speech to mark the New Year, Xi said China had overcome unprecedented difficulties and challenges in the battle against Covid, and that its policies were “optimised” when the situation and time so required.

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Sydney leads global New Year’s Eve celebrations

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Australia gears up for first restriction-free party since Covid struck, with more than 1m revellers flocking to harbour

Australia is gearing up to celebrate its first restriction-free New Year’s Eve after two years of Covid disruptions, with more than a million revellers expected to flock to Sydney’s harbourfront and watch an elaborate fireworks display.

Sydney is one of the world’s first major cities to welcome in the new year and draws huge TV audiences around the world, with a public countdown and fireworks display over its famous opera house.

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WHO urges Covid data ‘transparency’ as China prepares to open borders

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Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says WHO officials stressed to Beijing the importance of sharing data ahead of easing of travel restrictions on 8 January

The World Health Organisation again urged China’s health officials to regularly share specific, real-time information on the country’s Covid surge, as the UK joined other countries in bringing in travel restrictions, citing a lack of data as the reason.

WHO Covid experts met Chinese officials on Friday and “again stressed the importance of transparency and regular sharing of data to formulate accurate risk assessments and to inform effective response”, said the WHO chief, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

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Chinese navy jet flies within 10ft of US air force plane over South China Sea

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US aircraft forced to take evasive maneuvers during latest incident over contested shipping, fishing and gas field-rich region

A Chinese military plane came within 10ft (three meters) of a US air force aircraft over the contested South China Sea last week and forced it to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision in international airspace, the US military said.

The close encounter followed what the US called a recent trend of increasingly dangerous behavior by Chinese military aircraft.

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China: another Covid wave expected in rural areas after lunar new year

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Many city workers heading home for holiday in late January are likely to take disease with them

China is preparing for another wave of Covid to hit its more vulnerable countryside in early 2023, as the current wave of infections overwhelms hospitals and intensive care units in many cities.

The lunar new year, China’s most important holiday, falls in late January. It offers a chance of reunion after years of separation under the harsh internal travel restrictions and lockdowns of the previous zero-Covid policy.

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China bridles as EU states prepare to scale up Covid monitoring

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France joins Spain and Italy in requiring arrivals to show a negative result with the UK to follow suit

European countries are preparing to scale up the monitoring of potential new coronavirus variants from China, as Spain and France brought back mandatory testing at airports in response to Beijing’s rapid rollback of anti-infection measures.

The two countries on Friday followed Italy’s lead by requiring arrivals from China to show a negative test result, though unlike Rome, Spain makes exceptions for those who can prove they are fully vaccinated.

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China Covid: experts estimate 9,000 deaths a day as US says it may sample wastewater from planes

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Infectious disease experts believe strategy more effective in slowing virus spread than new travel restrictions, as health data firm says thousands are likely dying daily in China

The United States is considering sampling wastewater taken from international aircraft to track any emerging new Covid-19 variants as infections surge in China, as UK-based health experts estimate about 9,000 people a days are now dying of the disease in China.

The proposed of testing wastewater by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would provide a better solution to tracking the virus and slowing its entry into the US than new travel restrictions announced this week, three infectious disease experts said.

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UK ministers under pressure to screen China arrivals for Covid

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Politicians and experts call for border testing to be introduced, but others question usefulness of move

Ministers are coming under pressure to screen arrivals from China as the number of Covid-19 cases there continues to surge after Beijing’s abrupt decision to end most of its strict pandemic restrictions.

The US became the latest country to impose controls on travellers entering the country from China on Wednesday, demanding that all such arrivals show proof of a negative Covid test.

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EU states resist joining Italy on Covid testing for arrivals from China

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Italy urges action at European level as more than 50% of recent arrivals from China test positive at Milan airport

Member states of the European Union have resisted pressure from Italy to immediately impose mandatory anti-Covid checks on travellers entering the borderless Schengen area from China, with health officials in Brussels saying they would instead continue to monitor the consequences of Beijing’s rapid rollback of its previously stringent hygiene restrictions.

In recent days more than 50% of passengers from China at Milan’s Malpensa airport have tested positive for the virus, and on Wednesday Italy brought back mandatory coronavirus tests for everyone arriving from China, after reports of rising infection rates in the world’s most populous country.

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Why did China relax its Covid policy – and should we be worried?

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After long pursuing a strict zero-Covid regime, restrictions have been lifted in China as new variants emerge

After long pursing a zero-Covid policy, China has relaxed many restrictions including quarantine rules for travellers. But some experts have raised concerns the U-turn may cause problems. We take a look at why.

What has happened in China?

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Rural China races to boost medical facilities ahead of expected Covid surge

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Poorly resourced regional hospitals brace for flood of cases during upcoming lunar new year holiday as infections soar

China’s sprawling and thinly resourced countryside was racing to beef up its medical facilities amid a surging Covid-19 wave as hundreds of millions of migrant factory workers prepare to return to their families for the lunar new year.

Each year, hundreds of millions of people, mostly working in factories near the southern and eastern coasts, return to the countryside for the lunar new year festivities, due to start on 22 January next year.

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US to require arrivals from China to provide negative Covid test

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Other countries including Italy have taken similar steps after Beijing’s rollback of ‘zero-Covid’ policies led to surge in cases

The US has announced all travellers from China must provide a negative Covid-19 test to enter the country, joining other nations imposing restrictions because of a surge of infections.

The increase in cases across China follows the rollback of the nation’s strict anti-virus controls. Beijing’s “zero Covid” policies had kept the country’s infection rate low but fuelled public frustration and crushed economic growth.

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One person killed as 200 vehicles collide in fog on Chinese bridge

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Many people trapped in vehicles after pile-up on Zhengxin Huanghe Bridge in Zhengzhou

One person has been killed after more than 200 vehicles were involved in a pile-up on a bridge in the Chinese city of Zhengzhou in heavy fog, according to rescuers and the CCTV state broadcaster.

Cars and trucks could been seen crumpled and piled on top of each other on the Zhengxin Huanghe Bridge in pictures and videos posted on social media. One car was jack-knifed in the middle of a pile in a picture taken from CCTV footage.

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China’s move to open up travel sparks concern over spread of new variants

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Japan, India and Taiwan introduce measures to prevent influx of cases as experts say lack of data makes it difficult to assess risk

Virologists are watching nervously to see how China’s abrupt decision to drop some of its toughest Covid-19 restrictions, including scrapping quarantine rules for travellers, may affect variants and their global spread as some countries increase precautionary measures.

China’s decision on Monday to drop quarantine for overseas visitors from 8 January has prompted concerns about the potential for new variants to spread beyond China’s borders. Japan and India are among the countries that have introduced measures to prevent an influx of cases.

This article was amended on 28 December 2022. Airfinity estimates there are more than 5,000 deaths a day in China, rather than new cases as an earlier version said.

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China hospitals ‘extremely busy’ amid surging wave of Covid infections

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Health workers report huge jump in mostly elderly Covid patients as China adjusts to living largely without virus restrictions

Chinese hospitals were under intense pressure as a surging wave of Covid-19 infections strained resources in the last major country to move towards treating the virus as endemic.

In an abrupt change of policy, China earlier this month began dismantling the world’s strictest Covid regime of lockdowns and extensive testing, putting its battered economy on course for a complete re-opening next year.

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China’s move to ease Covid travel restrictions lifts hopes for global economy

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Analysts says lifting of many rules may soften impact of higher interest rates and unblock supply chains in 2023

China’s decision to ease rules on travel in and out of the country, the world’s second-largest economy, has offered investors hope that it could soften the toll from higher interest rates on global stock markets and unblock supply chains amid a dark outlook for 2023.

Chinese authorities said late on Monday that inbound travellers would not have to quarantine on arrival, from 8 January onward. The announcement marked the latest in a series of steps to reopen the country, which is home to vital global supply chains and 1.4 billion people.

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Taiwan extends compulsory military service amid mounting tensions with China

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Conscripts will see the length of their service extended from four months to one year in plans to be outlined by Taiwan’s president

Taiwan will extend its compulsory military service from four months to one year amid mounting military tensions with China, the island’s president has announced.

Under the plans due to come into effect in 2024, conscripts will undergo more intense training, including shooting exercises and combat instruction used by US forces. Conscripts will be tasked with guarding key infrastructure, enabling regular forces to respond more swiftly in the event of any attempt by China to invade.

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