Vietnam is a key transit and destination country for elephant ivory, rhino horn and pangolin scales. Photo by Volodymyr Burdiak/Alamy Stock Photo

Vietnam’s prime minister has issued a directive that will ban most wildlife imports into the country and crack down on the illegal wildlife trade there.

The directive from Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, which will go into effect immediately, comes in response to concerns about the reported close link between pandemic diseases, like COVID-19, and the wildlife trade. It also directs government agencies to step up their efforts to stop the illegal hunting, consuming, buying and selling of wild animals, including online sales.

The ban, however, does not prohibit the domestic trade in wildlife, nor does it shut down legal wildlife markets, particularly those selling mammal and bird species that are known to contract coronaviruses. If Vietnam is to…