Belgium Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs published the first list of colour codes for the areas which Belgian travellers are not allowed to go this summer.
For the time being, only the regions of Lleida, A Mariña (both in Spain) and Lisbon (Portugal) are considered a “red zone.”
For these three areas, Belgium issues a formal travel ban. Additionally, travellers returning from one of these three will be treated as “high-risk contacts,” which means they will be required to be tested and quarantined.
The bloc’s free-travel zone came to a screeching halt in March when countries chaotically imposed border restrictions to lock out the coronavirus. The European Commission wanted the reopening to be a much more orderly affair, but that’s not happening.
Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson told capitals earlier this month they must drop Europe’s internal-border restrictions to be ready to figure out a joint approach to restarting travel from outside the bloc, targeted for July 1. Brussels is desperate to avoid a messy global opening that results in a new round of border closures.
Johansson said that the coronavirus has retreated in Europe and that the EU’s own health agency advised that border restrictions inside the EU and the Schengen area are “not an effective way to deal with the pandemic right now.”
But she admitted that member countries may have trouble meeting the June 15 deadline.
Despite prodding from Brussels, Brussels Post guide shows a patchwork of policies across the bloc.
