Taiwan and the Pacific island nation of Palau are continuing to work out the details of a proposed COVID-19 travel bubble. Issues to be resolved include how travelers will be tested for COVID-19 and how stringent to make the precautionary rules they must follow after returning to their country of origin.
The Palauan side has proposed giving travelers from Taiwan rapid antigen tests upon arrival. However, Taiwanese officials say that travelers should be given PCR tests instead because it is not unusual for rapid antigen tests to come back with false positive results.
Taiwan also wants returning travelers to be subject to five days of what officials are calling “enhanced self-health management”.
A high-ranking official from the foreign ministry said Tuesday that talks on establishing a Palau-Taiwan travel bubble will likely conclude before the end of the month. That’s in light of Taiwan’s successful handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and Palau’s standing as one of the few countries in the world that has not recorded any cases of COVID-19 whatsoever.