Thai students allowed back to China after lockdowns eased
Thai students will be allowed to return to China after Beijing eased strict Covid-19 lockdown measures last week.
China hosted over 30,000 Thai students before the pandemic – many taking medical and science courses – but most were sent back to study online in Thailand in 2020.
Their permission to return was secured by Thai Foreign Ministry cooperation with Chinese agencies, deputy government spokeswoman Rachada Dhnadirek said on Friday.
She added that Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had also expressed concern about this issue.
"Thanks to Foreign Ministry cooperation, China has allowed Thai students to enter the country based on necessity and students' readiness," she said.
The first group of 76 Thai students flew back to China in February, according to Rachada.
However, China then imposed a rigid lockdown on tens of millions of people in Shanghai and other large cities to contain a new outbreak of the virus. Those measures were eased last week, meaning a second group of Thai students will now be allowed entry to the country.
Rachada said Chinese authorities were permitting the students to return as they are confident in Thailand’s Covid-19 management, especially its vaccination programme. Thailand recorded fewer than 3,000 cases on Friday as it moves towards declaring Covid endemic.
The Foreign Ministry said China had allowed overseas students from several countries to return to certain Chinese universities.
