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Due to the spread of a new variant of the coronavirus, Britain is becoming increasingly isolated. Several countries imposed entry bans, France closed sea lanes and the Eurotunnel. Prime Minister Johnson seeks a solution.
After a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hopes that freight traffic with the continent will resume as soon as possible.
He was hopeful the problem could be resolved “in the next few hours,” Johnson said. “We want to solve the problem as soon as possible.” It must be ensured that trucks can circulate “without covid” in both directions.
Johnson tries to calm down
The prime minister tried to calm the population. “The vast majority of food, medicine and supplies are being received as usual,” Johnson said. Only 20 percent of the goods would be traded through the Channel Port of Dover, which has been closed since Sunday night, and only affects goods that are accompanied by people, that is, trucks. . Truck congestion has also dropped significantly, Johnson emphasized.
France had closed the borders with Great Britain due to the rapid spread of the corona virus mutation, which the British classified as particularly aggressive. This also applies to the ferry connections between Dover and Calais in France and the Eurotunnel.
Entry bans in many EU countries
Besides France, most European countries prevented the kingdom from entering, including Germany. Other countries want to continue. Individual members of the Schengen area free from border control, such as Greece and Iceland, have yet to make a decision.
The deadlines for freezing tickets are also very different: they are between 48 hours and two weeks. In Germany, until December 31, British planes with passengers can no longer land. The Federal Government had moved forward with this decision within the EU. However, a crisis meeting of the member states that he had convened as EU presidency did not have concrete results.
Following the meeting, which lasted several hours, participants were said to have exchanged information on the national measures imposed so far. The EU Commission was then asked to provide guidelines for swift and coordinated action.
Maas evokes a common reaction
Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas spoke of a “substantially modified risk assessment” in Britain. He stressed the importance of a common response from the European Union. This is the only way to prevent an entry ban from being circumvented through other EU member states.
Within the Schengen area, to which most EU countries belong, the borders remained largely open during the second corona wave. This means that entry from Great Britain into Germany through an EU country without an entry ban would be possible without any problem.
Mutation appears in other countries
In addition to the United Kingdom, the new variant of the coronavirus has also been found in Australia, Iceland, Italy, the Netherlands and Denmark. Apart from Denmark, these are individual cases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
So far, nine cases are known in Denmark. Sweden closed its border with the neighboring country because of this, and Turkey also imposed an entry ban. Germany did not initially take the corresponding measures.
No evidence of severe disease progression
According to initial findings by British scientists, the mutation discovered in Britain is up to 70 percent more contagious than the previously known form could be. Prime Minister Boris Johnson had emphasized that there was no evidence that vaccines against the mutation were less effective. The form is spreading rapidly, especially in London and the South East of England.
According to the WHO, there is no evidence that people in whom the new variant has been detected have a more severe course of the disease than those who were previously infected.
