W.H.O. Chief: Travel Restrictions on China ‘Understandable’

World Health Organization (W.H.O.) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Thursday that W.H.O. needs “more detailed information” about the massive coronavirus outbreak in China to “make a comprehensive risk assessment.”

“In the absence of comprehensive information from China, it is understandable that countries around the world are acting in ways that they believe may protect their populations,” Tedros added.

He was referring to the decision by countries such as India, Italy, Japan, and Taiwan to impose mandatory coronavirus testing and other restrictions on Chinese travelers while an alleged sub-variant of the highly contagious omicron strain runs wild through the Chinese population.

China recently discarded most of its heavy-handed coronavirus safety protocols and resumed allowing its people to travel internationally. The heavy travel season of the Lunar New Year holiday begins in a few weeks.