S. Korea mulling sending chartered flight to bring nationals home

South Korea is reviewing a plan to send a chartered flight to Iran to bring its citizens home from the coronavirus-hit Islamic country this week, government officials said Sunday. The number of Iran's COVID-19 cases has reportedly risen to 5,823 with 145 deaths as of Saturday, raising concerns about the safety of Koreans in the country suffering a shortage of medicine and medical equipment. It marks the third most coronavirus infections in the world, following China and South Korea. "Th

March 8, 2020

PM urges cooperation for 'smooth' mask distribution amid virus angst

South Korea's prime minister on Sunday called for citizens' cooperation to resolve the supply shortage of face masks and ensure smooth distribution amid growing public anger over the bungled supply scheme. Under the measure that will take effect Monday, citizens will be able to buy only two protective masks per week from pharmacies, on designated days of the week, depending on the final number of their year of birth. "To make the system smoothly operate, there is a desperate need for pe

March 8, 2020

Seoul raises Japan travel warning on coronavirus fears

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry raised the travel alert for all regions of Japan on Saturday, amid growing concerns about the number of COVID-19 cases there.  Effective Monday Seoul advised “restraint,” representing the third level in the country’s four-notch warning system. A week ago it advised “caution,” a warning one notch lower.  The ministry cited growing concerns about the continued spread of the coronavirus in Japan and how it could affect

March 7, 2020

WHO addresses Seoul-Tokyo spat over coronavirus, calls on countries to stand together

The World Health Organization on Friday (Geneva time) urged countries to “stand together” on COVID-19, in response to the renewed diplomatic row between Seoul and Tokyo over travel restrictions in response to the outbreak.  “COVID-19 is a common enemy,” WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters during a press briefing at the agency’s headquarters in Geneva. “And the only way we can beat this virus is when we stand together. …

March 7, 2020

Trump says US is working closely with S. Korea on virus

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- US President Donald Trump said Friday that the United States and South Korea have been working closely together as allies to deal with the coronavirus outbreak. The president spoke during a visit to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, as his administration grapples with an increasing number of infections in the country. "We're working closely with South Korea," Trump said. "They're also in a much different position. Th

March 7, 2020

In countermeasure, Korea to halt visa-free entry program for Japan

South Korea said Friday it will halt a visa-free entry program for Japan and take other countermeasures in response to Tokyo's decision to impose new restrictions for South Korean visitors over coronavirus fears. First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Sei-young announced the measures, hours after the foreign ministry voiced "extreme regrets" over Japan's immigration control plan, which it chastised as "unreasonable, unscientific and unfriendly." "Our government once again ex

March 6, 2020

Seoul warns of countermeasures to Tokyo’s entry restriction on Koreans

South Korea on Friday expressed “extreme regret” over Japan’s entry restrictions imposed on its citizens over the novel coronavirus, and warned of “corresponding measures.”  　 Japan on Thursday announced that all arrivals from Korea will be put into two-week quarantine at designated facilities, while it has invalidated some visas already issued to travelers from here. It is also suspending a visa-waiver program for short stays, all effective from Monday. 　 It

March 6, 2020

FM Kang calls in Japanese Amb. Tomita to protest new entry restrictions

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha called in Japanese Ambassador Koji Tomita on Friday to lodge a protest over Tokyo's decision to impose new entry restrictions for South Koreans over novel coronavirus fears. Kang met Tomita hours after the ministry voiced "extreme regrets" over Japan's plan to request a two-week quarantine for visitors from South Korea. Tokyo has announced that from Monday through the end of this month, visitors from South Korea and China will be asked to stay at desi

March 6, 2020

Seoul says it may take 'reciprocal' steps against Japan's entry restrictions over coronavirus

South Korea's presidential office on Friday expressed "strong regret" over Japan's entry restrictions on people arriving from South Korea amid the spread of the new coronavirus, saying it may take measures under the principle of reciprocity. Seoul's warning of possible corresponding steps came one day after Tokyo said people arriving from South Korea and China will be quarantined at designated facilities for up to two weeks, citing concerns over the outbreak of the coronavirus in the

March 6, 2020

New York asks residents to self-isolate after returning from S. Korea

WASHINGTON -- New York City is asking residents returning from South Korea and four other countries to self-isolate for 14 days as a precautionary measure against the spread of coronavirus, the office of the city's mayor said Thursday. The office of Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the measure as the number of infections in the state of New York doubled overnight to 22. "The Department of Health is asking New Yorkers who return from the following countries to self-isolate for 14 days

March 6, 2020

S. Korea urges Japan to lift trade restrictions

South Korea on Friday urged Japan to immediately lift the trade curbs it imposed on Asia's No. 4 economy, stressing that Seoul has taken necessary measures to bolster its export control system in line with Tokyo's demands. In July last year, Japan imposed restrictions on exports to Seoul of three key industrial materials critical for South Korea's chip and display industries, namely photoresist, etching gas and fluorinated polyimide. Tokyo cited Seoul's alleged lax export control system for s

March 6, 2020

S. Korea voices 'extreme regret' over Japan's entry restrictions for Koreans

The foreign ministry on Friday expressed "extreme regret" over Japan's two-week quarantine plan for visitors from South Korea over new coronavirus concerns, warning of "all possible" corresponding measures. Vice Foreign Minister Cho Sei-young plans to summon Japanese Ambassador to South Korea Koji Tomita to officially lodge a protest over the measure that is set to take effect Monday and last until the end of this month. Tokyo announced Thursday that visitors from South Ko

March 6, 2020

Moon holds phone talks with leaders of UAE, Egypt on anti-virus efforts

President Moon Jae-in spoke by phone with the leaders of the United Arab Emirates and Egypt on Thursday and discussed joint efforts to cope with the new coronavirus, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said. Moon held talks first with Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the crown prince of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and then with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kang Min-seok said in a release. The phone talks each lasted about 20 minutes. Moon asked for understa

March 5, 2020

Japan to quarantine arrivals from South Korea, China over coronavirus

Japan decided Thursday to tighten entry restrictions on arrivals from South Korea and China starting next week amid concerns over the spread of the new coronavirus. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced after a government meeting that those flying in from the two virus-hit neighboring countries will be quarantined at a designated place for two weeks. The new measure will be effective from next Monday through the end of this month. Tokyo's has already imposed an entry ban on people

March 5, 2020

Seoul sends team to support Koreans quarantined in Vietnam

A South Korean team on Thursday left for Vietnam to support more than 310 South Korean nationals quarantined there over fears of novel coronavirus. 　 　 “The most important thing is to help our citizens who want to return to Korea, through consultations with the Vietnamese authorities,” Kyun Jong-ho, who heads the 12-strong “rapid response” team, told reporters at Incheon International Airport before taking off in the morning. 　 Consisting of officials mostly from the F

March 5, 2020

Australia to impose entry ban on people from Korea on Thursday

Australia plans to impose a temporary entry ban on foreigners from South Korea on Thursday, the country's embassy in Seoul said, as the number of COVID-19 infections here reached 5,766. Seoul's foreign ministry voiced "strong regrets" over the measures that it claimed came without sufficient prior consultations, officials said, stressing its all-out efforts to contain the novel coronavirus. Shortly before Australia's official announcement on the measures, Australian Ambassador to So

March 5, 2020

96 countries, territories restricting entry from S. Korea over coronavirus concerns

A total of 96 countries and territories are imposing entry restrictions or tougher quarantine procedures on people from South Korea on Thursday, amid fears about the new coronavirus outbreaks, Seoul's foreign ministry said. As of 9 a.m., 36 countries and territories, including Singapore and Hong Kong, had imposed entry bans on people who have traveled to South Korea in the past two weeks, according to the ministry. Four countries and territories, including Japan, have imposed entry bans on pe

March 5, 2020

Seoul official calls Japan’s reaction to coronavirus ‘political’

The chief of South Korea’s National Health Insurance Service described the Japanese government’s handling of the novel coronavirus crisis as “political,” with the upcoming Tokyo Olympics at stake. 　 Kim Yong-ik, president of the NHIS, said the number of infections in the neighboring country could be much higher than reported and that Japan is “not testing enough.” 　 “If a country does not test and diagnose, COVID-19 will be passed over as a cold, and

March 4, 2020

92 countries, territories restricting entry from S. Korea over coronavirus concerns

A total of 92 countries and territories were imposing entry restrictions or stricter quarantine procedures on people from coronavirus-hit South Korea on Wednesday, with Qatar being the latest to slap an entry ban. As of 9 a.m., 38 countries and territories barred the entry of travelers who have visited Korea in at least the past two weeks, according to the foreign ministry website. Qatar began to enforce an entry ban starting Monday on foreigners with a record of visits to South Korea, China,

March 4, 2020

89 countries, regions restricting entry of people from S. Korea over coronavirus fears

A total of 89 countries and regions are planning or imposing entry bans or quarantine procedures on visitors from South Korea on Tuesday, despite Seoul's push to curb what it calls excessively restrictive measures. As of 3 p.m., 37 countries and regions plan to ban or were barring the entry of travelers who have visited Korea in the past two weeks, while 52 countries and regions, including China, prepared or were carrying out quarantine programs or recommendations for them, according to the

March 3, 2020