The Prime Minister visited Suvarnabhumi Airport this morning to personally received the first batch of Covid-19 vaccines flown in from China.

The first 200,000 Sinovac doses arrived on Thai Airways flight TG675 from Beijing as Thailand prepares to kick start its national vaccination campaign.

The receiving ceremony was also attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, Deputy Public Health Minister Sathit Pitutecha, and Yang Xin, Chargé d’Affaires of the Chinese Embassy.

In addition to the Sinovac’s vaccine, another 117,000 doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccine will also arrive this afternoon.

According to the Ministry of Public Health, the second batch of 800,000 doses of Sinovac’s vaccine will arrive next month and another batch of one million in April.

After what feels like an eternity, the Bangkok Metropolitan Authority has just announced that bars and entertainment venues can reopen and booze is back on the menu at restaurants effective immediately.

The news comes after the BMA Communicable Disease Committee met this afternoon to discuss the relaxing measures that came into effect yesterday from the CCSA that saw Bangkok downgraded to the Orange Controlled Area category.

The news means restaurants can now sell alcohol to customers, nightlife can resume and bars reopen – all with a closing time of 11pm.

Foreigners who have been issued with a Certificate Of Entry to Thailand are now required to download the ThailandPlus app prior to their arrival, according to the Government Public Relations Department.

Announced last October, the ThailandPlus tracking application is intended to create confidence among foreign tourists about their health and safety while on holiday together with containing the spread of COVID-19.

ThailandPlus functions like the Mor Chana app using GPS and Bluetooth for track and trace in addition to linking with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to log information including certificate of entry details.

The whereabouts of all tourists with the app installed will be known throughout their stay and allow authorities to immediately alert visitors if they have come into any high-risk situations or environments.

Authorities said the application would not infringe on any users privacy and is intended only to combat the spread of COVID-19.

Thai embassies and consulates overseas will provide visitors with information about how to download and use the ThailandPlus app.