China – Today, Beijing’s streets were bustling as people in two districts were permitted to come back to work, while Shanghai moved closer to removing its two-month-old Covid-19 lockdown, which began on Wednesday, as the number of Covid cases throughout China decreased. While the rest of the world attempts to coexist with the virus, China is the only major country to …

Korea – According to reports in the media, North Korea has eased movement restrictions that had been enforced in its capital city of Pyongyang after the government made its first admission of a Covid-19 breakout some weeks ago. The isolated country claims that the virus issue is now under control. Since the declaration of a state of emergency and the …

China – The Chinese province of Henan has required its roughly 100 million residents to undergo a Covid test every two days, a first in the nation as it battles an Omicron-fueled spike. Even while most of the globe has adjusted to live with the coronavirus, China has maintained its zero-Covid policy, enforcing tight lockdowns and mobility restrictions in numerous …

China – Officials in the sport of football said on Saturday that China has withdrawn from bidding to host the 2023 Asian Cup owing to the coronavirus. Beijing’s strict zero-COVID approach has dealt another blow to the country’s athletic goals. Millions of people in Shanghai have been subjected to stringent regulations for more than a month now as part of …

ASEAN – Hong Kong will reduce the required hotel quarantine for passenger flight crews from seven to three days, while cargo crews will be excused, in a small step toward easing the city’s coronavirus restrictions, which have transformed it into one of the world’s most secluded locations. The measures, which take effect in May, would provide “much-needed survival space” for …

Singapore – Singapore has imposed sanctions on Russia on Saturday that include four banks and an export embargo on electronics, computers and military products, in a rare measure by the Asian financial center in response to what it said was Moscow’s “dangerous precedent” in Ukraine. The small city-state, a worldwide shipping center, does not usually impose sanctions on its own …

ASEAN – Once the Omicron transmission wave has peaked and begun to subside, Singaporeans should expect further loosening of Covid-19 limits, according to Health Minister Ong Ye Kung. He mentioned this in a written response to a query from Mountbatten Member of Parliament (MP) Lim Biow Chuan, who questioned what the goal conditions are before the government considers relaxing the …

Philippines – As infections reached a three-month high, Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte announced yesterday that individuals who have not received Covid-19 shots would be arrested if they break stay-at-home orders. In a televised address to the country, Duterte said he was ordering local officials to hunt out unvaccinated persons and confine them to their residences. “He can be arrested if …

Thailand – Following a reported increase in cases of the extremely infectious Omicron coronavirus variant during the holiday season, Thailand’s health ministry urged on people to come forward and obtain booster vaccinations. At a press conference, health official Supakit Sirilak said that the nation has reported 2,062 cases of the Omicron variant so far this year, an increase from the 740 …

Malaysia – Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said today that cabinet members ordered to come home from abroad would be subject to the regular quarantine restrictions, with no special exceptions. This was in answer to a question about whether foreign ministers would be granted special exemptions from current quarantine restrictions. “At this time, even though they have returned home, they must …