“I hope that by the end of the year, if we have more countries with large parts of their population vaccinated, we will have more confidence and more systems in place to open our borders to the world and restore travel safely,” Mr Lee told the BBC. “Hopefully, if not sooner, then by the end of this year or next year, the doors will gradually be opened again.”
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in an interview with BBC on March 2, 2021. Photo source: Channel News Asia
Singapore is currently managing the Covid-19 situation well with a low number of new cases and a Covid-19 vaccination program has also begun, with two vaccines approved for use: Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. The island nation has planned to complete vaccination for the entire population by the end of this year.
Earlier, in an interview with Money FM 89.3, Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung said travel corridors for vaccinated visitors from places with low to medium infection rates could happen in the second half of this year, as Singapore continues to look to open its borders and revive its aviation industry.
Singapore is still suspending all leisure tourism activities, however some commercial and official tourism activities are still taking place. Photo source: The Straits Times
On the air travel bubble situation, Mr Ong said such arrangements require bilateral approval, as Singapore has unilaterally opened its borders to tourists from countries and territories that have controlled the outbreak, such as Australia, New Zealand and China, and this has not affected community transmission here.
"It's unfortunate because we're the only safe place in the world that's opening up to other countries," Ong said. "If other countries start to adopt air travel bubbles, if there's mutual agreement between countries, then you can start to travel again. And I hope that we can do that sometime this year."
