A policeman is on duty on the blocked road to Lautoka Hospital, in Lautoka, Fiji, May 6, 2021. (FIJI SUN/Handout via Xinhua) Pakistan confirms 2,724 new cases, vaccination campaign to be expanded; Thailand's COVID-19 deaths hit new daily high; India's tally crosses 27 million; Vietnam reports 80 new local cases. HONG KONG, May 26 (Xinhua) The following are the latest developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in Asia-Pacific countries.
CHINA / SOCIETY
By Wan Lin Published: Apr 19, 2021 10:17 PM
A man walks past a Chinese restaurant in Chinatown of Incheon, South Korea, Feb. 16, 2021. (Xinhua/Wang Jingqiang)
A tourist attraction in South Korea, which the local media claimed to be a Chinatown, has sparked so much controversy and anti-China sentiment that a South Korean politician had to clarify that the cultural complex is in fact not Chinese-themed but intended to showcase Korean architecture. Nonetheless, 600,000 South Koreans have already signed a petition demanding a halt to the construction.
The event has prompted Chinese experts to call for an easing of the growing overreaction and sensitivity of some South Koreans over issues related to Chinese culture. The anti-Chinese sentiment shown in the controversy might be driven by conservative forces in South Korea amid a simmering cultural feud between the netizens of the two countries, observers said.
SOURCE / ECONOMY
By Global Times Published: Apr 06, 2021 10:03 PM
Tourists dressed in traditional costume visit a folklore-themed village in Yongin, South Korea, Feb. 5, 2019. (Xinhua/Wang Jingqiang)
China and South Korea will coordinate and establish a mechanism for the mutual recognition of their health codes, China s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Tuesday, in a move that would help further normalize business and tourism activities between the two countries.
Efforts by the two neighbors could also drive more Asian countries to set up health code recognition programs that could bode well for a regional economic rebound, industry observers said.
China and South Korea agreed to support the inclusion of each other s citizens into their COVID-19 vaccination programs and work together to establish a mutual recognition mechanism for health codes, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said at a press briefing in Beijing on Tuesday.