The Spanish Government announced this Friday the establishment of “airport controls” for travelers from China, to guarantee that they do not carry the virus that causes the Covid-19 disease.
According to the Minister of Health, Carolina Darias, at a press conference held today in Madrid, travelers from China will have to present, upon entry into Spain, “proof that they are negative [para a infeção] or who have the full vaccination schedule.”
The minister did not say, however, when the measure will come into force.
This decision by the Government of Pedro Sánchez comes after the lifting of sanitary restrictions by the Chinese authorities, which caused a huge explosion of Covid-19 cases in China.
The announcement was also made the day after an informal meeting called by the European Commission was held in Brussels with the aim of finding “a coordinated approach” for all member states, but which ended without any decision.
Of all the member countries of the European Union (EU), Spain was the second hardest hit in March 2020 by the pandemic, only behind Italy.
The Spanish Government imposed, at the time, a very strict confinement that deeply affected the population.
In addition to Spain, only Italy -among the 27 EU countries- had already announced the decision to require negative tests for passengers arriving from China.
Outside the EU, the United States and Japan have taken a similar step.
“The main reason for concern is (…) the possibility of new uncontrolled variants appearing in China,” explained Carolina Darias, adding that Spain is trying to organize “a high-level meeting of the European Union” to develop ” an integrated political response to this crisis”.
“We know the importance of acting in a coordinated manner [com os países da UE]but also the importance of acting quickly”, said the minister, who recalled the high cost that the pandemic has had in Spain.
For this reason, we will insist on the need to review the recommendations for requesting a digital Covid certificate [19 negativo] or equivalent to travelers from China,” he said, reiterating that Spain wants this to be done “at a European level.”
This measure would be “the best security guarantee for everyone”, said the minister.
According to a statement released today by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the introduction of mandatory screening for Covid-19 in the European Union for travelers arriving from China “would be unjustified.”
EU countries “have relatively high levels of immunization and vaccination” and “variants circulating in China are already circulating in the EU,” the center explained, arguing that the measure was not necessary at the EU level as a whole.
Despite the explosion in the number of cases, the Chinese authorities have announced that they will lift, as of January 8, the mandatory quarantines upon arrival in China and will allow Chinese people to travel abroad again, after three years of isolation.
According to the American Johns Hopkins University, which since the beginning of the pandemic has provided data on cases and deaths from the disease, China has so far registered 4.4 million cases and 16,938 deaths.
Source: TSF
