Across Asia, omicron is making its presence known.

Many countries have tightened local precautions as cases have started rising.  All but China and Hong Kong have abandoned zero-Covid strategies, and total local lockdowns similar to those seen earlier in the pandemic are being avoided, at least for now

Borders remain tight in most locations.  While dropping the entry ban on several African countries and expanding the Sandbox locations, Thailand has indefinitely suspended the quarantine-free Test and Go Scheme.  Japan has extended the ban on entry of non-resident foreigners through the end of February.  The biggest changes are in small tweaks to the number of hours prior to travel a test must be taken or additional testing post-arrival and before release from quarantine.   Taiwan has pushed its line of defense against imported cases to the airport, requiring passengers from many locations to await results of an on-arrival covid test prior to transferring to quarantine.

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