Belgium: European Commission "surprised" by extension of travel ban
Travelers at Brussels Zaventem International Airport on January 22, 2021 (illustrative image).
AP - Francisco Seco
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
Belgium extended the ban on non-essential travel until April 18.
This decision, which also affects many expatriates and foreign students, irritates the European Commission.
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The European executive is surprised by this extension, announced in the press.
The Commission sent a warning letter to Belgium and 5 other countries, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Hungary last month, deeming their travel restrictions disproportionate.
In its written response, the government of Alexander De Croo had highlighted the temporary aspect of the measure and the fact that it was part of a wider policy to avoid a third wave of the pandemic.
According to a spokesperson for the Commission, Christian Wigand, the letter mentioned the date of April 1 but did not mention that of April 18, that is to say, after the Easter holidays.
Hence the irritation of the European executive which says it is examining "
all the
possible
options
" against this decision deemed disproportionate and which embarrasses many expatriates and employees of the European institutions.
It advocates, instead, more targeted screening and quarantine measures.
For his part, the Commissioner in charge of Justice, the Belgian Didier Reynders, underlines on Twitter, that “
freedom of movement is a fundamental freedom.
We will continue to act to avoid travel bans
”.
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