Bangladesh temporarily suspends visa-on-arrival facility for Chinese nationals

Bangladesh on Sunday temporarily suspended its visa-on-arrival services for Chinese nationals amid a global health emergency over coronavirus outbreak. Bangladesh's Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen on Sunday held a press briefing where he announced the recent development. Abdul in his statement said, "the government has requested Chinese nationals in Bangladesh not to go on leave especially over the next month while the global health emergency is in place."

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According to Bangladesh's local media reports, Foreign Minister Abdul also requested the authorities not to recruit any Chinese nationals for the ongoing projects in the country. Abdul further added that the development is a temporary measure and it will be removed once the virus outbreak is contained. Abdul stated that Chinese nationals can still apply for a visa after submitting a medical certificate along with the application. 

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Measures taken by other countries

Bangladesh is not alone in issuing the travel restrictions on Chinese nationals, India on Sunday temporarily suspended the e-visa facility for Chinese travellers. Russia, a close ally of China has stopped issuing electronic visas and also announced that it would halt visa-free tourism for Chinese nationals. Philippines, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka also imposed similar restrictions on Chinese nationals. Singapore has stopped issuing visas to Chinese travellers, while Vietnam has halted tourist visas.

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India evacuated more than 500 citizens from Wuhan city. Air India flights carrying doctors from the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital arrived at Wuhan to evacuate Indian citizens. The coronavirus outbreak has killed more than 300 people in China alone and has infected over 14,562 others. The deadly contagious virus has spread to 27 countries, including some developed countries like Australia, Canada, the USA, France, Germany, Japan, and the UK. The disease is believed to have originated in a market in Hubei's Wuhan city, where animals were being traded illegally.

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