78 countries restricting entry from S. Korea over coronavirus fears

Two countries have been added to the list of nations and regions imposing entry restrictions or stricter quarantine procedures on travelers from South Korea over coronavirus fears, the foreign ministry in Seoul said Sunday. As of 5 a.m. Sunday, 78 countries have moved to bar the entry of people traveling from South Korea or to strengthen quarantine steps. The ministry said Angola is now one of 35 countries to keep out South Koreans or foreigners who've recently visited South Korea. Angola's

March 1, 2020

US State Department urges Americans not to travel to Daegu over coronavirus

WASHINGTON -- The US State Department on Saturday raised its travel advisory for Daegu to the highest level, urging Americans not to travel to the South Korean city most affected by the coronavirus. The advisory was raised to Level 4, which means "do not travel," due to the level of community transmission of the virus and imposition of local quarantine procedures, the department said on its website. The rest of South Korea remained under Level 3, which means "reconsider travel.&

March 1, 2020

FM voices strong regrets over Vietnam's planned suspension of visa-wavier program for Koreans

South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha voiced strong regrets on Friday over Vietnam's decision to suspend a visa-waiver program for Korean nationals amid growing coronavirus fears, calling it an "excessive" entry restriction. Kang made the remark during a phone conversation with her Vietnamese counterpart, Pham Binh Minh, on Friday, hours after the Southeast Asian country announced the plan, according to her ministry. Kang conveyed South Koreans' deep disappointment with Vietn

Feb. 28, 2020

58 countries restrict entry from coronavirus-hit S. Korea

Nearly 60 countries are restricting the entry of travelers from South Korea with bans or tougher quarantine procedures over coronavirus concerns, foreign ministry data showed Friday, as the number of infections rose to more than 2,300 confirmed cases here. South Korea's government issued an advisory asking its people to reconsider or delay any planned travel to countries that have imposed restrictions due to worries that people could face inconveniences or safety issues. As of Friday, twenty-

Feb. 28, 2020

S. Korea to offer half of promised help to China through int'l agencies: official

South Korea will provide about half of the aid it promised to China in its fight against the new coronavirus through international assistance agencies in an apparent bid to avoid disrupting supplies of medical items for its own people, a foreign ministry official said Friday. Late last month, the Seoul government unveiled a plan to provide $5 million worth of aid to China, including face masks, medical gloves and disinfectants, to help the country at the center of COVID-19 outbreak, which has

Feb. 28, 2020

S. Korea raises travel advisory for northern Italy

South Korea raised the travel advisory for three provinces in northern Italy on Friday after the European country reported a rapid increase in new coronavirus infections. The foreign ministry issued a "yellow warning", which calls for travel restraint and is the third highest out of a four-level scale, for Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna and Veneto in the country's north, according to the ministry website. The ministry cited growing concern over person-to-person transmission as the numbe

Feb. 28, 2020

Vietnam to suspend visa-wavier program for Koreans on Saturday

Vietnam will suspend a visa-waiver program for South Korean visitors this week, the South Korean Embassy in the country said Friday, as the number of confirmed new coronavirus cases has topped 2,000 here. The embassy said the Vietnamese government has informed it of a plan to temporarily suspend the program on Saturday, under which Koreans have been able to stay in the Southeast Asian country for up to 15 days without a visa. Aside from the latest measure, Vietnam has banned the entry of vis

Feb. 28, 2020

Korean Embassy in Iran calls for preparations for possible contingency amid spreading coronavirus

The South Korean Embassy in Iran has called for hundreds of its citizens there to prepare for possible contingencies, warning that the coronavirus outbreaks in the Islamic republic could escalate into a "serious situation." In an emergency notice posted on its website Thursday, the embassy urged about 200 South Korean citizens in Iran to ensure they always carry their passports, cash, mobile phones and other "essential" items. The number of Iran's COVID-19 cases has report

Feb. 28, 2020

58 countries restrict entry from coronavirus-hit S. Korea

Nearly 60 countries are restricting the entry of travelers from South Korea with bans or tougher quarantine procedures over coronavirus concerns, foreign ministry data showed Friday, as the number of infections rose to more than 2,300 confirmed cases here. Twenty-seven parts of the world have entry bans on South Koreans and foreigners who have visited the Asian country in the past few weeks, up from the previous day's tally of 22. They include Saudi Arabia, Palestine, Jamaica and two others.

Feb. 28, 2020

Chinese embassy provides 25,000 masks to virus-hit Daegu

The Chinese Embassy in South Korea on Thursday provided 25,000 masks to the southeastern city of Daegu amid a spike in the number of the new coronavirus cases in the city. The embassy said the provision was an expression of gratitude to South Koreans over the friendship and support they showed to China, which is trying to cope with the COVID-19 outbreak. "The embassy will continue to secure various supplies for quarantine efforts and actively support and stand by South Korea for it t

Feb. 27, 2020

Trump says ‘not the right time’ to bar entry from S. Korea

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday (US time) said it was “not the right time” for the US to restrict travelers from South Korea, though it may do so in the future. 　 “At a right time, we may do that. Right now, it’s not the right time,” he told a press conference on the novel coronavirus in Washington, adding the US was checking people arriving from infected areas. 　 “They are working on their countries, and we are working on our country, since, so far

Feb. 27, 2020

China, 11 more countries restrict travel from S. Korea over coronavirus concern

About a dozen additional countries and parts of China have slapped entry restrictions on travelers from South Korea, and the United States has raised its travel warning for its Asian ally as the wave of new coronavirus cases in the country showed no signs of let-up. The State Department's travel advisory was raised by one notch to Level 3, the second-highest on a four-tier scale. Level 4 advises people not to travel to the designated country. The US has not put any entry restrictions from trav

Feb. 27, 2020

US State Department urges Americans to reconsider travel to S. Korea

WASHINGTON/SEOUL -- The US State Department raised its travel advisory for South Korea to the second-highest level Wednesday, urging Americans to reconsider travel over concerns about the coronavirus. The travel advisory was raised by one notch to Level 3 on a four-tier scale, according to its website. Level 4 advises Americans not to travel to the designated country. The measure came shortly after US President Donald Trump said earlier Wednesday that it is not the right time to restrict trav

Feb. 27, 2020

US military restricts travel to S. Korea over coronavirus

WASHINGTON -- The US Indo-Pacific military command said Wednesday it is restricting nonessential travel to South Korea over concerns about the coronavirus. The notice came after a soldier with US Forces Korea tested positive for COVID-19 amid a rapid rise in the number of cases in the country. "Effective immediately, Commander, US Indo-Pacific Command, in line with the CDC Travel Health Notice, restricts all nonessential (Department of Defense) travel to (Republic of Korea) to reduce ris

Feb. 27, 2020

S. Korea, US in close communication over coronavirus: ambassador

WASHINGTON -- South Korea and the United States have been in close communication over the coronavirus, including the US response to a surge in cases in the South, Seoul's ambassador to Washington said Wednesday. Amb. Lee Soo-hyuck said South Korean Embassy officials have been meeting with State Department and White House officials to communicate the South Korean government's response to the COVID-19 outbreak and discuss the US government's next steps. The US Centers for Disease Control and Pr

Feb. 27, 2020

Trump says it's not right time to put travel restrictions on S. Korea

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that it's not the right time to put travel restrictions on South Korea over the coronavirus. Trump was asked at a White House press briefing whether he is considering restricting travel to and from South Korea, Italy and other countries affected by COVID-19. "At a right time we may do it," the president said. "Right now it's not the right time, but at a right time." South Korea has seen a rapid increase in the number

Feb. 27, 2020

Countries shut doors on S. Korea over coronavirus fears

Gripped by COVID-19 fears, more than two dozen countries have barred entry to or tightened restrictions on travelers from South Korea, with neighboring Japan becoming the latest to do so.  　 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said from Thursday it will deny entry to foreign nationals who have visited the Korean city of Daegu and the neighboring county of Cheongdo, North Gyeongsang Province, the areas hit hardest by the coronavirus here. 　 Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said Tokyo had inf

Feb. 26, 2020

Trump says he 'spoke to' S. Korea about coronavirus

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he spoke with South Korea and Italy about the spread of the coronavirus in those countries. Trump made the remark during a press conference in New Delhi, India, as he talked about US cooperation with China over the virus, which has infected more than 80,000 people around the world, mostly in China. "I spoke to (Chinese) President Xi (Jinping) the other day. He is so committed to solving that problem. He is working very hard. He i

Feb. 26, 2020

Senators say US should stop excessive demands for defense deal with S. Korea

WASHINGTON -- The United States should stop demanding that South Korea pay significantly more for the American troop presence in the country, two US senators said Tuesday. Sens. Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Edward Markey (D-MA) issued the call during a hearing looking back on the year since the February 2019 summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Hanoi, Vietnam. Both men lamented the lack of progress in North Korea's denuclearization and raised the importan

Feb. 26, 2020

Seoul asks foreign missions to refrain from rigorous entry restrictions

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry is urging partner countries to refrain from imposing rigorous entry restrictions against Korean nationals, amid concerns over the COVID-19 outbreak here. 　 The ministry explained Korea’s efforts to contain the novel coronavirus and request the countries refrain from taking excessive measures in a briefing session on Tuesday afternoon.  　  Kim Gunn, deputy foreign minister for political affairs, head the session held at the ministry in Seou

Feb. 25, 2020