Simon Birmingham, the minister of Australia's Trade, Tourism and Investment, said Australia is unlikely to reopen its borders this year to international travelers.
Speaking at an event at Australia's National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday, Mr. Birmingham said that student visa holders and some other categories of visitors who stay there for a more extended period could be accommodated more easily. The reason is that they can simply work through the 14-day quarantine periods that worked so well to safely return Australians to this country.
He went on to say that concerning other countries and how they look at the short duration international visits, it is much more challenging once you move beyond New Zealand, but not impossible. He said he hopes that they can eventually look at some of those countries that will succeed in suppressing the spread of COVID-19 and work with those countries to find security.
When the moderator said that's more like next year, not this year," Mr. Birmingham replies, "I think that is more likely the case."
Source: Travel News Asia
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