Well-known Chinese news site NetEase reported on December 28, that, according to multiple Indian media sources, the Indian government has informally asked all airlines not to fly in any Chinese customers. It said this includes domestic airlines as well as foreign airlines. Currently, there are no direct flights between China and India, but most Chinese travellers come from Europe. Some airlines asked the Indian government to provide them with something in writing so that they can offer some official proof when cancelling legitimate customers’ flights. This appears to be a strong retaliatory response from India to China. At the beginning of December, China banned travellers from the UK, Russia and China, citing temporary pandemic related concerns. In the meantime, around 1,500 Indian seamen were stuck in the Chinese port of Jingtang for months since the ships were not allowed to disembark the sailors or to leave the port.