Laos’ Information, Culture, and Tourism Ministry have outlined plans to reopen the country to domestic and foreign tourists in 2022 under the “Lao Travel Green Zone programme,” reported Vientiane Times on Dec. 8. Deputy Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone said the government would focus its campaign to draw visitors from China and Korea, according to CCP mouthpiece Xinhua. The news came at the heels of the opening of the Laos-China railway on Dec. 3, a $6 billion project under Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, aimed at flowing trade and travel into a country plagued by debt amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the new travel scheme, Vientiane, the capital city of Laos, and tourist spots Vangvieng and Luang Prabang would be marked “green zones,” where at least 70 percent of the local population and 90 percent of service providers have been vaccinated. The ministry said visitors must produce their vaccination certificates and negative PCR …