Laurence Dollimore
SPAIN is set to confirm the list of 15 non-EU countries it will allow travel between from July 1.
Foreign Affairs Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya told Cadena Ser this morning that by tomorrow latest, there will be a European-wide agreement on the countries, all of which have been deemed ‘safe’.
‘Safe’ means that in the last two weeks, their rate of new coronavirus cases has remained the same as or below that of the European average.
The 27 ambassadors from each EU member state agreed on the list last week but it has been waiting for approval from each country’s capital.
According to Europa Press, if all is agreed, tourists will be permitted to arrive, from July 1, from Algeria, Australia, Canada, Japan, Montenegro, Morocco, New Zealand, Rwanda, Serbia, South Korea, Thailand, Tunisia, Uruguay, Georgia and China.
Opening up to China will depend on reciprocity.
The list will be reviewed most likely every two weeks, with the possibility of adding new countries or removing pre-existing ones if they experience troubling spikes in COVID-19.
In the case of Morocco, the opening up to the north African state will, for now, be symbolic, given that no one is allowed to leave the country until July 10.
Laya said it is important for the bloc to open its borders ‘gradually’, warning that there are still continents where the virus is growing at an alarming rate.
The minister added that there has been no pressure from the US to be included in the travel list, saying that the World Health Organisation has stated the virus there ‘is still in an ascending phase.’
The US has also closed its borders to Europe.
Spain still plans to open its land border with Portugal on July 1, Laya said, with a joint act between the two countries expected imminently.
