Dec. 29 (UPI) — The European Union on Thursday said that additional COVID-19 screenings for travelers arriving from China would be “unjustified.”
The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control said in a statement that a surge in COVID-19 cases in China as it lifted travel restrictions was “not expected to impact” the EU.
“We remain vigilant and will be ready to use the emergency brake if necessary,” the ECDC said.
The ECDC added that COVID-19 variants currently circulating in China are already circulating in the EU and higher immunity levels in the bloc, along with high vaccination rates reduce the chances of infection.
Britain’s government also said it would not immediately implement new restrictions for travelers from China.
“At the moment there are no plans to introduce any new COVID-19 testing for arrivals,” a representative for the prime minister’s office said.
Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, however, said potential restrictions were “being reviewed,” adding the Department for Transport could provide clarification in the coming days.
The Chinese government said Tuesday it will not quarantine travelers upon arrival to its mainland starting Jan. 8, while dropping travel restrictions for residents.
In response, the United States announced new restrictions for travelers, citing concern over the lack of transparency given by China about the current status of COVID-19’s spread.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Wednesday that starting on Jan. 5, the country will require a pre-departure negative COVID-19 test for anyone flying in from the China regions of Hong Kong and Macau.
U.S. officials said the date gives airlines enough time to implement the change and will continue monitoring going forward to decide when to lift the requirement.
“CDC is announcing this step to slow the spread of COVID-19 in the United States during the surge in COVID-19 cases in [China] given the lack of adequate and transparent epidemiological and viral genomic sequence data being reported from the PRC,” the CDC said in a statement.
“These data are critical to monitor the case surge effectively and decrease the chance for entry of a novel variant of concern. CDC will continue to monitor the situation and adjust our approach as necessary.”
Japan also said will require a negative COVID-19 test on arrival for travelers from China and quarantine those who test positive, while Malaysia said it will increase virus surveillance measures and South Korea’s Disease Control and Prevention Agency will announce new measures for Chinese travelers on Friday.
Breaking with other European nations, Italy on Wednesday announced antigen swabs for all passengers coming from China after a Dec. 26 flight from China to Milan’s Malpensa Airport found that 52% of the passengers tested positive for COVID-19.
“Italy cannot be the only country to carry out anti-COVID checks at airports for those arriving from China,” Italian Transport Minister Matteo Salvini said on social media, complaining about the lack of response from other European countries.
“The government has said it’s now going to keep that under review and review whether different countries with COVID outbreaks … should obviously face different restrictions,” said Wallace.