[World Report] "Korea's confidence in vaccines made in China" China speaks for itself

China's state-run Global Times reported heavily on the Korean government's decision to 'exempt self-quarantine when entering Korea for vaccinated persons'.

"It reflects South Korea's trust in Chinese vaccines," he said.

Earlier, on the 13th, the Korean government announced a plan to reform the immigration control system for those who have completed overseas vaccinations.

From the 1st of next month, those who have completed the COVID-19 vaccine abroad will be exempted from the quarantine for two weeks.

However, it was limited to those who entered Korea two weeks after inoculating all the recommended number of vaccines in the same country, and the recognized vaccines were also limited to those urgently approved by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The WHO urgently approved seven vaccines so far: Pfizer, Janssen, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Chinese vaccines Sinopharm and Sinovac.

The government has added a new purpose for visiting immediate family, while limiting the exemption from quarantine to non-tourism, but important business purposes, academic and public interest purposes, humanitarian purposes, and overseas business trips.

Even those who have been vaccinated will not be exempt from quarantine if they enter from 13 countries where the mutant virus is prevalent, such as South Africa and Brazil.

government cited 'the issue of equity between domestic and overseas vaccine recipients' as the basis for expanding quarantine exemption. Since May 5, if domestic and foreign nationals who have been vaccinated in Korea have departed from the country and then return to Korea, quarantine is exempted. As the quarantine exemption does not apply, the government explained that there have been continuous requests to ease entry procedures. It also means that there are so many overseas Koreans and international students who are unable to enter Korea due to quarantine even after being vaccinated abroad.

However, the issue of equity still persists. Currently, vaccines available in Korea include Pfizer, Janssen, and AstraZeneca. Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines made in China have not been introduced to Korea. Therefore, in a situation where it is impossible to get a Chinese vaccine in Korea, Korea first took measures to exempt those who received a Chinese vaccine abroad.

China's state-run Global Times welcomed this move. "Korea has become the first country to exempt quarantine for those vaccinated from China," the report said. It was also referred to as 'good progress' for vaccine mutual certification. An immunologist, who requested anonymity, told The Global Times, "If this policy is implemented well in Korea, China can also use it as a reference when adjusting its immigration control measures." If the quarantine situation does not worsen after the quarantine exemption measures in Korea, it is read that China can review the quarantine exemption at that time.

So, when will China start taking measures to exempt quarantine? In conclusion, it is still a long way off. An official from the Korean Embassy in China said, "China has proposed mutual certification of vaccines and is currently under review." It is said that there has been a proposal from the Chinese side to guarantee mutual free travel for vaccinated persons in China and South Korea, but an agreement has not yet been reached. Here, 'free travel' includes 'visa issuance' and 'entry permit', but 'isolation exemption' is separate. In other words, mutual authentication will facilitate visa issuance and entry permit for vaccinated persons, but China's position is that they must be quarantined when they come to China. Furthermore, China has said that it will only recognize those vaccinated from China. The idea is that vaccines from other countries are unreliable, but there is virtually no change in the current situation since Korea cannot vaccinate with Chinese-made vaccines. Rather, the real purpose of mutual certification is taken to mean that "Korea should also introduce a Chinese vaccine as soon as possible."

In short, from the 1st of the next month, quarantine will be exempted when vaccinated persons enter Korea, but they still have to be quarantined when they enter China. People who go to Korea from China and then return to China must also be quarantined. The current mandatory quarantine in China is three weeks.

There are also prospects that China's quarantine measures could be strengthened. Next month, the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party, and the Beijing Winter Olympics in February next year, we have no choice but to be very careful for the time being. In addition, as the number of COVID-19 patients is re-spreading recently in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, there are signs that quarantine measures will be strengthened. It is reported that there are cases of confirmed cases among those who entered China after receiving the vaccine. The Global Times added, "Immunologists say that more observation and discussion is necessary before adjusting the entry policy given the current spread of COVID-19 in Guangzhou and other places." . Peng Duo-jia, president of the China Vaccine Industry Association, said, "No vaccine can 100% prevent COVID-19," and predicted that "China will implement a strict quarantine policy for a long time."

Even if the COVID-19 situation in China calms down, the observation that it will be difficult to exempt from quarantine for the time being is possible, although it is possible to shorten the quarantine period. Of course, we have to consider equity with other countries, but some are pointing out that the South Korean government may have disarmed too early without China's quarantine exemption measures or minimum consultations in this regard.