Beijing reopening its borders has caused concern over the potential for new variants of the virus to emerge
Italy has become the first country in Europe to make it obligatory for people arriving from China to be tested for Covid-19 following Beijing moving to reopen its borders after lifting some of its toughest anti-Covid restrictions.
The move, which sees Italy join a number of countries closer to China in changing its travel policy, comes amid concerns over the potential for new variants to emerge during fresh outbreaks of the virus in China and quickly spread overseas. Japan, Malaysia, South Korea and India are among the Asian states that have introduced measures to prevent an influx of cases, including mandatory PCR tests and genetic sequencing of positive cases.