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As the coronavirus pandemic improves, Poland hopes to lift the travel ban on neighbors and other foreigners in the coming weeks, says Jacek Czaputowicz, the country’s foreign minister.
At a joint press conference with the Baltic foreign ministers on Tuesday, Czaputowicz said the so-called “Baltic bubble”, which had previously decided not to impose travel restrictions on each other’s citizens, was “inspired by Poland”, but there were still many problems with outbreaks of migration-related coronaviruses, such as coal mines.
“This is an agreement between the threat to health and the need to develop the economy and tourism. So we have to properly evaluate it. The Minister of Health must make decisions about the phase of lifting travel-related restrictions,” said J Czaputovičius.
He stressed that while countries were “on the right track” in managing the coronavirus, concrete decisions would depend on the recommendations of national experts.
“Given that we are on the right track, I hope that the restrictions will be lifted in the coming weeks and that vacation travel will be possible,” added the minister.
He emphasized that there was also a debate at the European Union (EU) level on a common policy for travel throughout the Community.
“Perhaps this bubble is a bubble for the European Union, I hope,” he said.
Latvian Foreign Minister Edgar Rinkevičius said that as the Baltic states ease restrictions on more and more states, it was necessary to strike the right balance between controlling the coronavirus and allowing economies to operate.
“In about an hour, the Latvian government will make a decision similar to that of the Estonian and Lithuanian governments not to require 14 days of self-isolation for citizens of the European Union and the European Economic Community, where the number of cases is 100 thousand. “We have fully coordinated and implemented this policy in all three countries,” he said at a conference before noon.
The Baltic countries have agreed on a list of 24 countries from which foreigners are allowed, no further two weeks of self-isolation are necessary if they come from 24 others.
L. Linkevičius hopes to coordinate actions across the EU
L. Linkevčius told BNS that he had not heard specific dates from the Polish Minister regarding the opening of the borders to the Baltic States, but that he was interested in the experience of the countries in coordinating joint actions. He says there should be a gradual shift towards joint coordination across the EU.
“That process takes a little more time, but I would predict that Poland will also open up, and that would be another logical participant in our” Baltic bubble. “The same can be said for Finland. We are trying to extend this experience, imagine that the entire Union European, the Schengen area should be like this, then we would coordinate the opening of borders with third countries, ”said L. Linkevičius.
According to him, the meeting discussed in detail security issues related to joint military exercises, development of defense plans, United States participation in the security situation in Poland, coordination of actions in the context of 5G. L. Linkevičius states that countries “have very similar views” when evaluating the draft EU budget.
Until June 12, Poland has expanded control of the European Union’s internal borders with Lithuania, Germany, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Currently, Lithuanian citizens can travel to Poland for work, business or study, as well as to transit through this country. Lithuania and other Baltic states do not apply self-isolation to those coming from Poland.
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