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Germany is also affected by the temporary travel restriction from February 1 to the end of April.
Singapore has announced that it will temporarily suspend its reciprocal “travel bubble” deal with neighboring Malaysia, as well as South Korea and Germany, amid the resurgence of global coronavirus cases and its new variants reported.
As of Monday, the city-state will suspend the Green Lane Agreement, which allowed people living in partner countries to travel to and from Singapore on business, and Singaporeans to enjoy the same privilege in countries concerned.
Singapore’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday it would review the arrangement after three months.
“The Singapore government regularly reviews its border measures to manage the risk of importation and local transmission of COVID-19 by travelers,” the announcement said.
Singapore first established the “green lane” system with Malaysia in August. It was followed by South Korea a month later and Germany in October.
The new restrictions will not affect those whose travel permits have already been approved, the Foreign Ministry said.
Cross-border travel
The move will mainly affect neighboring Malaysia, which on Friday recorded 5,725 new cases of the coronavirus – the biggest daily increase since the pandemic began a year ago.
The new cases in Malaysia have brought the cumulative total of infections beyond the 200,000 mark. Health officials have also reported 16 deaths, bringing the total number of deaths to 733.
There are an estimated one million Malaysian citizens living in Singapore, with many more commuting to work across the border. Before the pandemic, around 90,000 Singaporeans lived in Malaysia.
However, the pandemic and the surge in new cases in Malaysia has forced its government to re-impose new, stricter lockdown orders in several states, including Johor Bahru, across the border from Singapore.
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