Rabat/ UNI: The Moroccan authorities have banned all people arriving from China from entering the country, amid a surge in coronavirus cases, the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

"In the light of the evolution of the health situation related to Covid-19 in China, and of the regular and direct contacts with the Chinese side, and in order to avoid a new wave of contaminations in Morocco and all its consequences, the Moroccan Authorities decided to prohibit access to the territory of the Kingdom of Morocco to all travellers, regardless of their nationality, coming from the People's Republic of China," the ministry said in a Saturday statement.

The ministry specified that this measure does not affect "the sincere friendship between the two peoples nor the strategic partnership between the two countries."

On Friday, both France and the United Kingdom announced that passengers arriving from China will be required to present negative COVID-19 test results beginning the first week of January.

On Wednesday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that starting from Jan 5, the United States was going to require international travellers coming from China to test negative for COVID-19 prior to entering the country.

Italy and Spain, as well as several other countries, have also introduced precautionary measures amid a surge in coronavirus cases in China, where harsh COVID-19 restrictions were eased at the start of December.