Coronavirus: China advises foreign diplomats to stay away from Beijing until May 15
- Envoys may have diplomatic immunity, but they are not immune to Covid-19, foreign ministry says
- US embassy says its employees will obey Chinese law but calls on Beijing to ensure their ‘protections and safeguards’ are maintained
“Diplomats enjoy immunity, but the virus will not grant them immunity,” China’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Friday.
Beijing was aware of a number of foreign diplomats that had been infected with the coronavirus, so the foreign ministry was advising that those not already in Beijing should not return before May 15, she said, without stating the nationality of any of the people affected.
China last week imposed a ban on all foreigners returning to the country – including those with residence permits – but said the rule would not apply to diplomats, who are generally guaranteed freedom of movement and other privileges under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961.
Hua’s comments came after the ministry’s protocol department last week wrote to foreign embassies in Beijing asking that any of their envoys currently outside the city delay their plans to return, diplomatic sources said.
With the introduction of widespread travel restrictions and other measures to contain the Covid-9 outbreak in China, many foreign diplomats have found themselves unable to perform their regular duties of representing their citizens. The latest ruling is unlikely to make their work any easier.