Following the discovery of a new variant of Covid-19, which is said to spread faster than others, the Ministry proposed to suspend and halt issuance of visas for tourists from the UK.
According to the World Health Organization, scientists initially estimated that the new Covid-19 variant in the UK was 70 percent more transmissible compared to the strains before. The new variant has been widely spreading to nations in the world. Till January 3, 2021 34 nations have recorded the new variant of virus SARS-CoV-2
Accordingly, more than 40 nations in the world decided to suspend flights from the UK and other nations that have identified the new variant of the coronavirus, shut the border gates as well as banning entry to anyone who has been in these nations to curb the spread.
Germany, Holland and Bulgaria are the first nations imposed border shutdown with the UK while France announced a temporary ban on all travel and accompanied freight and border closure and travelers who have been to the UK in the last 14 days would have to self-quarantine.
Anyone wanting to enter France must have health results that he/she is negative for the deadly virus. dozens of countries across Europe, the Middle East and the Americas had announced travel bans for the UK. Others, such as Greece and Spain, have imposed restrictions that require travelers arriving from Britain to undergo coronavirus tests or quarantine.
In Vietnam, the Ministry announced that researchers have been monitoring the genetic codes of the virus of six infected passengers in the flight VN50 from the UK to Vietnam on December 22 discovering one contracting the new variant VOC202012/01 which was recorded in the UK.
Therefore, for the success in the fight against Covid-19, the Ministry of Health asked for the PM’s direction to the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Public Security, Transport, and National Defense, as well as relevant agencies to stop organizing and restrict the licensing of flights to Vietnam from countries and territories that have been confirmed with the mutant coronavirus strain.
