Japan and China resume business travel amid the pandemic

TOKYO (Kyodo) – China and Japan welcomed the restart on Monday of mutual business travel, with expectations that loosening border controls and mandatory 14-day quarantine requirements will accelerate post-coronavirus shooting of the second and third world economy.

“It comes in difficult circumstances, but I expect (resumption of travel) to help promote human exchanges,” Japan’s Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said in a message read in an online forum attended by previous government officials and current and corporate executives from the two countries.

Motegi’s Chinese counterpart Wang Yi said in a video message that the easing of travel restrictions “will accelerate the pace of recovery of companies’ manufacturing activities amid the pandemic and I believe it will provide important support for the recovery and the development of (Japanese and Chinese) economies “.

The forum, held annually since 2005, was organized by the Japanese non-profit think tank Genron NPO and the China International Publishing Group. A meeting between Motegi and Wang followed in Tokyo on Tuesday, where they reached an agreement to resume business travel by the end of this month.

Under the agreement, Japan and China will allow short-term visiting businessmen to be exempted from the usual 14-day quarantine period upon arrival if they test negative for coronavirus and submit an itinerary of their activities in advance. .

The deal, which follows similar frameworks Japan has initiated with Singapore, South Korea and Vietnam, materialized when the Japanese business community said the 14-day self-isolation requirement represents an obstacle to conducting in-person business. China.

However, for expats and other long-term residents, the quarantine requirement of 14 days after arrival in their respective countries remains in effect.

China accounted for the largest number of foreign visitors to Japan in 2019, with around 9.59 million people arriving, including around 370,000 on business, according to data from the Japan National Tourism Organization.

The recovery comes amid a resurgence of coronavirus infections in Japan, fueling concerns that travel between the two countries could result in further spread of the virus.

Japan recorded a daily figure of 2,684 new coronavirus cases on Saturday with 440 of those infected suffering from severe symptoms, both at record highs.

Government chief secretary Katsunobu Kato said at a press conference on Monday that the recent relaxation of internal border controls in Japan has not been blamed by experts for causing the increase in the number of cases of infection in the country.

“For economic revitalization, international travel is indispensable,” Kato said. “We will consider ways to allow international travel while taking steps to prevent the spread of the virus, continuing to consult with experts and looking at the domestic infection status.”