Vietnam to waive quarantine for Korean business travellers

Vietnam has agreed to allow some South Korean business people to travel between the two countries without having to complete mandatory 14-day anti-coronavirus quarantine, Seoul said on Friday.

The agreement will go into effect on Jan 1 and will allow visitors on short-term business trips to avoid the quarantines, South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry said South Korea already exempts similar short-term business visitors from all countries from having to complete the quarantine.

Vietnam’s government has not yet announced the move. Its foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

South Korea has made similar arrangements with China, Japan, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and Indonesia.

South Korea used aggressive testing and tracing to control its coronavirus outbreaks, but in recent weeks a new wave of infections has led to daily tallies not seen in months.

Thanks to a targeted testing system and a strict, centralised quarantine programme, Vietnam has kept its virus tally to a low 1,361 cases and 35 deaths, allowing it to resume economic activities earlier than much of the rest of Asia.

Students and their family members walk in front of an exam hall ahead of the annual college entrance examinations amid the coronavirus disease pandemic, in Seoul on Thursday.

Reuters – December 4, 2020