5 US senators ask Joe Biden to impose China travel ban after respiratory illness cases
The White House and the Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately comment.
Maria Van Kerkhove, acting director of the WHO’s department of epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention, said earlier this week the increase appeared to be driven by a rise in the number of children contracting pathogens that they had avoided during two years of Covid-19 restrictions.
In recent months, the US and China have been steadily increasing flights between the countries, that are still far below 2019 levels. The number rose on Nov. 9 to 35 per week for each country, up from 12 per week in August.
In January 2020, then US President Donald Trump barred most non-American citizens who had been in China in the prior two weeks from coming to the United States over concerns about Covid-19. However, he did not restrict or limit flights between the two countries.
Chinese travel firms prepare for return of foreign tourists as outlook improves
The United States lifted the unprecedented travel restrictions for fully vaccinated international visitors starting in November 2021, including from China.
The United States rescinded a separate requirement that air travellers test negative before arriving in June 2022.
The United States in January started requiring air passengers to get negative Covid-19 tests after Beijing’s decision to lift its stringent zero-Covid policies and lifted the requirements in March