The great pandemic blame game between the US and China has left thousands of people stranded

For Chinese students who have finished their degrees with no job prospects in America, not being able to return home means worries about visas, rents and insecurities

In a climate of a ferocious war of words in recent months, the fact that the threat has been diverted shows that both sides can compromise if they can find some common ground, writes Yuwen Wu (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Have you ever been stranded somewhere?

In April 2010 I was visiting Munich when ash clouds caused by Icelandic volcanic eruptions grounded most European flights for weeks on end. After several agonizing days, we took a train to Paris, and then boarded a Eurostar to London, at considerable cost to us.

The whole thing was quite stressful, but nowhere near as stressful and costly as what some of my Chinese friends are experiencing in the US right now.

This time, it is Covid-19 that has brought air travel to almost a complete halt, in this instance, between the US and China, stranding tens of thousands of Chinese students, scholars and other visitors there, with no certainty as to when they can go home.

Like my friend Amy.

She is in Atlanta to visit her son and granddaughter, a trip she has taken on a number of occasions and which she normally enjoys, as she can spend time with her granddaughter while her son and daughter-in-law teach at university.

The visit started in December 2019, with a mid-March return date.

By then, however, coronavirus, having wreaked havoc in China, had started to rage across the USA. All US flights to China were suspended from early February when Donald Trump, against WHO advice, banned travellers from China, a move criticised by Beijing as “over-reacting”

China then imposed a policy from 26 March, which stipulates that Chinese airlines can only operate one weekly roundtrip flight from any country, and foreign airlines can only operate one weekly flight to and from China.

The result was a reduction from 325 weekly flights between the two countries in January to just 34.

Amy’s original return flight to China was cancelled. Two subsequent tickets she bought for May and July were also cancelled.

She needs regular medication for high blood pressure and cerebrovascular conditions; before the medicine ran out, her husband posted some from Beijing. But recently, a parcel was returned to him without explanation. While he sorts this out, she might have no medication for a while. Anxiety over this has made her unwell and led to insomnia.

“I am really worried about my health,” Amy told me in a recent call. “Sometimes, I want to hit my head against the wall. When I want to cry, I go out and take a walk by the river so my son won’t see me in such a state,” she said.

Amy is not alone in facing problems.

For Chinese students who have finished their degrees with no job prospects in the US, not being able to return home means worries about visas, rents and insecurities.

Politics can make it worse. As president Trump and his team constantly referred to Covid-19 as the “China virus” or “Wuhan virus”, hate crimes against Americans of Asian origin have risen sharply, with 100 cases reported every day in California alone, according to a statement by Democratic Congress woman Judy Chu in March.

While nobody expects Beijing to evacuate all the Chinese visitors, some questions why it cannot do more to facilitate their return. “These are the people who collected donations and sent face masks to China when she was hit by coronavirus; isn’t it time China did something for them in return?” they ask.

Chinese social media platforms are inundated with angry posts, pleas for help, and occasional good news.

One graduate told how his six tickets had all been cancelled before succeeding in booking a flight home. Another shared his joy of getting a ticket to Shanghai via Mexico and Japan, for a three-day journey.

The tickets are not cheap either – a trip to China can cost anywhere between 30000 to 60000 CNY and more ($4200 to $8400; £3300 to £6600), several times the normal price.

Covid-19 poses unprecedented challenges at best of times; it doesn’t help that the Sino-US relationship is going through the toughest period in decades, with ongoing trade disputes and allegations regarding the origin and the handling of the pandemic.

On 3 June, US Transport Department announced plans to block Chinese airlines from flying into the USA from June 16, in retaliation to China’s decision to prevent US airlines from resuming services between the two countries.

Many people’s heart skipped a beat on hearing this, as it threatened to cut off flights to China completely.

The next day, China accused the US of “creating obstacles over ongoing negotiations” while making a rare concession: it would loosen some restrictions so US carriers could apply to resume services to China, but with no more than one flight per week.

The US backed down too, saying it would allow Chinese airlines two weekly flights to and from the United States, pending China’s approval.

In a climate of a ferocious war of words in recent months, the fact that the threat has been diverted shows that both sides can compromise if they can find some common ground. For economic recovery post-Covid-19, the US and China will both benefit if the lucrative passenger services take off again, gradually and cautiously.

It can be done. A student who recently flew back to China from New York told me of the protective measures from check-in, boarding to mid-flight and at the destination, to minimise the chance of bringing Covid-19 into China.

What is needed is some goodwill and pragmatism.

Let’s hope it won’t be too long now before more flights will be allowed to and from China so that people like my friend Amy and thousands of other Chinese nationals can finally return home safely.

Yuwen Wu is a London-based Chinese specialist and former senior journalist with the BBC