Vietnam asks China to reopen border crossings earliest as trade gets impacted

After China raised its border restrictions with its neighbours in a bid to contain COVID-19, it impacted the trade between the neighbouring countries prompting Vietnam to ask Beijing to relieve the border restrictions. As per the reports by Vietnam News Agency (VNA), the commerce ministry of Vietnam has urged China's Guangxi authorities to take immediate action to reopen its borders.

The trade ministry stated that the safety actions that Guangxi is implementing under the 'zero COVID' policy, such as closing border gates or prohibiting fruit imports are hurting their trade. The ministry further said that this disruption has a severe impact on bilateral trade and resulted in significant losses for both enterprises and individuals, according to VNA. Guangxi trade officials responded by saying they would extend the time period it takes to clear customs and forward other ideas to higher-ups.

Vietnam irked by major trading partner China

It is pertinent to mention here that Vietnam's major trading partner, as well as its largest market for fruits and vegetables, is China. Vietnamese agriculture ministry stated that the total import-export turnover of agricultural products between the two nations exceeded US$11.3 billion in the first 11 months of 2021, representing a 19.5% rise compared to the same time period last year.

Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Minh Vu spoke by phone with Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Wu Jianghao two days ago, and the two sides agreed to maintain regular contact while they sought to settle the issue, reported VNA. Thousands of trucks were held up at the border after allegations that the imported COVID-19 cases were discovered in Pingxiang, a border city in Guangxi. Since then, China has tightened border controls with its neighbour, which has seen an uptick in infections since late November, with 16,000 new cases registered on Friday.

China imposes 4-week ban on dragon fruit imports from Friendship Pass

China has also put a four-week ban on dragon fruit imports from the Friendship Pass, which is the largest road crossing between the two countries, until January 26 after health officials in Shanxi province reported finding coronavirus on packaging from Vietnam, according to South China Morning Post. Vietnamese media sources suggest that several exporters have been forced to return from the border due to the new limitations. They are now attempting to sell the fruit at a reduced price at home in order to limit their losses.

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