Germany floats grounding almost all international flights to combat new COVID variants
Germany is considering a ban on almost all international air travel into the country to stem spread of more infectious variants of Coronavirus, Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said on Tuesday.
“The danger from the numerous virus mutations forces us to consider drastic measures”, Seehofer told in an interview given to German newspaper Bild. He added that the stricter measures could include stricter border checks and reducing international air travel into Germany almost to zero, citing the example of Israel.
His comments came amid growing fears over the new coronavirus strains, which are considered to be more infectious and amid a deepening row between the European Union and the British-Swedish pharmaceutical, AstraZeneca.
Addressing a meeting of lawmakers from the Cristian Democrats and the Cristian Social Union (CDU/CSU) bloc, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said citizens had a right to expect that the government would take “certain precautions at the border,” participants told AFP.
“Everyone understands that now is not the time to travel,” she was quoted as saying, the French agency further reported.
