News

In the absence of credible information from the Chinese government, researchers around the world are looking for any clues to determine the size and severity of the surge.

Department of Health confirms that from 5 January anyone travelling to England will be asked to take a pre-departure test
Rishi Sunak has performed a major U-turn by imposing Covid checks on travellers from China from 5 January, after criticism from a growing number of Conservative MPs over his “dithering”.
After a series of about whether the UK would follow the lead of Spain, Italy, Israel, the US and India in screening arrivals, the prime minister backed the move to bring the UK into line with its allies in a change of policy on Friday.

METUCHEN, N.J. -- American Girl just unveiled their 2023 "Girl of the Year," and she's from New Jersey. Kavika Sharma, or Kavi for short, is a spunky Broadway-loving dancer and singer from Metuchen.

American Girl just unveiled their 2023 "Girl of the Year," and she's from New Jersey. Kavika Sharma, or Kavi for short, is a spunky Broadway-loving dancer and singer from Metuchen. She's the line's ...

Move follows House of Representatives ban, which TikTok called a ‘political measure that will do nothing’ for national security
TikTok has been banned on all federal government devices in the US, with limited exceptions, after Joe Biden signed a $1.7tn (£1.4tn) spending bill on Thursday containing a provision that outlaws the China-based app over growing security concerns.
The ban – which was approved by Congress in a vote last week – is a major step targeting the fastest-growing social media platform in the world as opponents express worry user data stored in China could be accessed by the government.

US aircraft forced to take evasive maneuvers during latest incident over contested shipping, fishing and gas field-rich region
A Chinese military plane came within 10ft (three meters) of a US air force aircraft over the contested South China Sea last week and forced it to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision in international airspace, the US military said.
The close encounter followed what the US called a recent trend of increasingly dangerous behavior by Chinese military aircraft.

Many city workers heading home for holiday in late January are likely to take disease with them
China is preparing for another wave of Covid to hit its more vulnerable countryside in early 2023, as the current wave of infections and intensive care units in many cities.
The lunar new year, China’s most important holiday, falls in late January. It offers a chance of reunion after years of separation under the harsh internal travel restrictions and lockdowns of the previous zero-Covid policy.

Our approach to the pandemic has always been science-led, and that’s still the case with our new, more lenient guidelines
Over the past weeks, Beijing has become the first city to go through the infection peak, and life and work are returning to normal in the capital. The Covid-19 situation in China is generally stable and controllable, and people are making plans to work, study and travel.
That’s why the Chinese government has announced that, starting from 8 January, Covid-19 will be managed with measures against Class B instead of the more serious Class A infectious diseases in accordance with the law. There will also be new cross-border travel rules. For visitors to China, no Covid test will be mandatory upon arrival and no centralised quarantine will be required if someone tests positive while in the country. This is another adjustment China has made to its approach based on a comprehensive assessment of the pandemic situation, representing a shift of focus from stemming infections to preventing severe cases and further minimising the impact of Covid-19 on economic and social activities.
Zheng Zeguang is the Chinese ambassador to the UK
Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our section, please .

France joins Spain and Italy in requiring arrivals to show a negative result with the UK to follow suit
European countries are preparing to scale up the monitoring of potential new coronavirus variants from China, as Spain and France brought back mandatory testing at airports in response to Beijing’s rapid rollback of anti-infection measures.
The two countries on Friday followed Italy’s lead by requiring arrivals from China to show a negative test result, though unlike Rome, Spain makes exceptions for those who can prove they are fully vaccinated.

Analysts say Chinese leader has leverage as Russian counterpart ‘has no one else to turn to’ amid Ukraine war
Vladimir Putin invited his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, on Friday to make a state visit to Russia next spring, as Moscow seeks to deepen its ties with China amid growing international isolation over the war in Ukraine.
Speaking to Xi via a videoconference, Putin said Russia’s ties with China are the “best in history”, expressing his wish to extend military collaboration and inviting Xi to visit Moscow.