Singapore committed to reopening borders even as omicron spreads

Singapore is committed to steadily reopening its borders and aims to set up more quarantine-free travel agreements, Transport Minister S. Iswaran said in Parliament on Monday as the Asian country looks beyond the rising number of coronavirus cases. Passenger traffic will improve this year at Singapore’s Changi Airport after reaching about 15% of pre-pandemic levels at the end of 2021 from 3% a year ago, though a full recovery will likely “several years,” Iswaran said. “Our goal is to restore quarantine-free travel with more countries and regions as allowed for by the public health assessment,” he said. “We remain confident of the long-term potential of air travel and are resolutely committed to working with Changi Airport Group and airline partners to rebuild and reclaim Singapore’s status as an international air hub.” Changi Airport saw traffic pick up in the latter part of 2021 after Singapore established so-called vaccinated travel lanes with about two dozen countries. They allow fully-vaccinated travelers to enter the city-state without having to quarantine. Ticket sales for the lanes have been on hold since Dec. 23 as Singapore tries to address the local spread of the highly contagious omicron coronavirus variant. <br/>