270 South Korean experts arrive in Vietnam, quarantined

They landed at Cat Bi Airport in the northern city of Hai Phong after coming by a special Vietnam Airlines flight from South Korea's Incheon International Airport with certificates issued by South Korean authorities - which are accepted by the Vietnamese government - saying they are coronavirus-negative, Hai Phong authorities said.

They have been housed in hotels.

This was the fifth flight bringing LG engineers to the company’s plant in Hai Phong.

As of mid-June around 3,500 South Korean experts had been granted permission to enter Vietnam for work, the country's Ambassador to Vietnam, Park Noh-wan, said.

Vietnam closed its borders and suspended all international flights on March 25, and has stopped issuing visas for foreign nationals since March 18. Only its own nationals and foreigners who have diplomatic or official passports or are experts or highly skilled workers are allowed to enter after a 14-day quarantine.

But with many businesses needing foreign experts to operate, many localities and diplomatic agencies have been asking the government to ease the restrictions, according to the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs.

Ho Chi Minh City authorities have sought visas for 437 foreigners working for 100 companies in the city.

At a government meeting in Hanoi last week Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said Vietnam was not yet ready to open up to international tourists given the lack of improvement in the global situation and the second wave of infections suffered by several countries, including China and South Korea.

But the government wants experts, investors, business managers, and highly skilled workers to come and resume work.

Vietnam has gone 77 days without community transmission of Covid-19. It has had 355 infections but no deaths, and 340 of those infected have recovered.