KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is prepared to discuss with the United Kingdom the possibility of establishing a Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) to enable fully-vaccinated travelers from the UK to enter Malaysia without the need for quarantine.
Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said this was conveyed to the UK's Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, Elizabeth Truss, with the agreement of Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah in their meeting.
"We will discuss the technical issues and announce a timeline soon on opening a VTL for travelers from the UK to Malaysia," he told reporters after the meeting today.
Truss arrived in Malaysia on Sunday as part of her first visit to the Southeast Asian region after being appointed to office in September.
Khairy said he had also told Truss of Malaysia's hope that the UK would enable Malaysians who have received the Sinovac vaccine to enter the country without requiring a quarantine period.
Currently, the UK only allows Malaysians who have been inoculated with selected vaccines to enter without the need to undergo mandatory quarantine.
"I was told that good news from the UK is in the offing. I hope they will also announce that they will recognise the Sinovac vaccine, which would allow recipients to enter the UK without quarantine," he said.
Asked on the two imported AY.4.2 Delta sub-variant cases detected in Malaysia, Khairy said it is still classified as a Variant Under Investigation (VUI) and not a Variant of Concern (VOC).
"We have found that it is an infectious variant without symptoms with a slightly higher infectivity than the original Delta. But in terms of severity, no worse than the original Delta variant," he said.
He said the sub-variant is still under investigation and monitoring in Malaysia.
On Saturday, Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah had announced the discovery of two Covid-19 cases involving the sub-variant.
The imported cases came from two Malaysian students who had just returned from the UK to Malaysia.- Bernama
