Hanoi (VNA), March 6 -- Thailand is considering COVID-19 vaccine passports and quarantine exemption in an effort to boost the ailing tourism sector as inoculation rolled out worldwide, China's Xinhua News Agency has reported.

Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered the foreign ministry to conduct a study into the vaccine passports. "If we decide to unveil the plan, China will be among the first countries that we're going to negotiate with," Thai Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua.

Preliminary plan will involve issuing certifications for inoculated visitors to Thailand, lifting them from the two-week mandatory quarantines and relaxing some restrictive measures, said Wissanu, addin...