A Chinese tourism company said today that North Korea will impose a temporary ban on entry of foreign tourists due to the spread of a new deadly strain of the Coronavirus in China.
Most of the North Korean foreign tourists come from China.
Young Pioneer Tours, a Chinese-based adventure tourism company, said in a statement that as of tomorrow, North Korea will temporarily close its borders to all foreign tourists as a precaution against the virus, which has spread rapidly from the Chinese city of Wuhan.
"I have confirmed that North Korea will temporarily suspend entry of all foreign tourists to it until it senses that the new strain of the Coronavirus is under control," Rawan Bird, from Pioneer Tours, told Reuters.
The company statement said that more details will be confirmed by its North Korean partners later.
A director of another tourism company contacted by Reuters said they were also notified of the move, but it was not yet clear who would be affected by the policy, expecting to announce more details on Wednesday.
Concern is growing about the virus, which can be transmitted between humans through contact, especially with millions of Asians traveling this Lunar New Year holiday this week. The number of confirmed cases of the virus in China rose to 291 on Monday.