[ad_1]
“Based on all we know so far,” the new strain “has no effect on vaccines” which are still “just as effective,” the minister told public broadcaster ZDF, based on “negotiations between experts from the European institutions “.
Mr Spahn was referring in particular to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which is already in use in countries like the United States and the United Kingdom and is due for approval by the European Medicines Agency on Monday.
A spokesman for the Health Ministry said a meeting of EU experts took place on Sunday, which was also attended by representatives of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) in Berlin.
A chain of EU countries has suspended passenger flights from the UK in response to the new strain of the virus, and France has said it will also block UK cargo unless unaccompanied.
At the time, the UK announced tougher restrictions affecting some parts of the country.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Saturday that according to preliminary data, the new strain of coronavirus could reach 70 percent. more contagious than its main variant.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that nine cases of the new strain had been identified in Denmark and one in the Netherlands and Australia. At the time, Italy also reported late Sunday the discovery of a case following an investigation into a person returning from Britain.
The German presidency of the EU this semester convened a meeting of experts on Monday to discuss the bloc’s response to the new threat, a spokesman for the Health Ministry said.
The meeting will be held within the framework of the Integrated Political Crisis Response (IPCR) mechanism, which can be activated in response to large-scale and complex crises, including health, environmental or acts of terrorism crises.
[ad_2]
