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Latvian border. Photo by Judita Grigelytė (VŽ).
Lithuania did not manage to slide through the “needle hole”, like Estonia, it was included in the list of countries most affected by the coronavirus, so this weekend there is no more the so-called “Baltic travel bubble” .
The text was supplemented by comments from Aurelijus Veryga and the Latvian Minister of Health.
According to the latest data released by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control on Friday, 16.1 cases of coronavirus cases per 100,000 inhabitants have been registered in Lithuania in the last two weeks.
The agreed limit was exceeded
This means that, according to the center, a kind of “red line” has already been crossed this Friday: the Baltic states belonging to the European Union have agreed to include 16 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the last 14 days.
The next limit is 25 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants. Countries that surpass it become part of the list of countries most affected by the virus.
At that time, statistics released by the Lithuanian National Public Health Center (NVSC) on Friday morning show that new cases of coronavirus in 14 days. The country has a population of 15.7 per 100,000, that is, according to these data, Lithuania still does not exceed the limit.
The differences between the data from the NVSC and the European Center for Disease Prevention, as written by VŽ, are due to the different methodology for calculating coronavirus cases and the different data on the country’s population used.
On Friday, it was reported that 26 new coronavirus cases were confirmed in Lithuania last day, the total number is 3,004.
In recent weeks, more and more COVID-19 cases have been recorded in Lithuania, of which 20 to 40 have been recorded regularly. And last Thursday, there was a record number of new coronavirus cases since this year. meter. mid-April – 48.
Will evaluate again in a week
On this occasion, the latest data from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control were especially awaited, as they had to decide whether Lithuania would be included in the list of countries most affected by the virus, from which it was necessary to isolate itself.
This Friday, when Lithuania exceeds the limit of 16 points, Latvia should include it in the so-called “yellow list”, forcing people who come from Lithuania to isolate themselves for two weeks.
Estonia should be on the same list, with 16.4 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in two weeks, according to the European Center for Disease Prevention.
On Friday evening, Latvia will officially publish its latest list of countries affected by the coronavirus, which will take effect on Saturday. When Lithuania and Estonia enter, the so-called “Baltic Travel Bubble” will collapse, starting this May.
Latvia is characterized by having the lowest number of new coronavirus cases in Europe, only a few per day.
Next time, the latest data on the spread of the virus in Lithuania and Estonia will be evaluated in a week, that is, next Friday.
The government of Latvia will consider the situation
“Latvia still needs to find official decisions on this issue. But if there are no changes, it seems that we, like Estonians, will be included in that list, because Latvia automatically includes all countries that have exceeded the limit of 16 cases,” he acknowledged Aurelijus Veryga, the Minister of Health, in response to a question from VŽ on Friday.
“Therefore, people going to Latvia from Lithuania will have to isolate themselves. But I really don’t know how to treat Lithuanian citizens who work in companies in Latvia, for example, on the border with Lithuania, or students who study in institutions of Latvian higher education. It is probably necessary to contact the employer and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which has compiled all the relevant information in this regard, “advised the Minister.
The fact that Lithuania is on the list of countries most affected by the coronavirus does not mean that the border between Latvia and Lithuania will be closed automatically or that travel from one country to another will be completely prohibited.
But it has already been reported that the Latvian government plans to consider on Friday afternoon what restrictions should be imposed on travelers from Lithuania and Estonia due to the increased incidence of coronavirus.
Latvian Health Minister Ilze Vinkelė said that special conditions for traveling in the Baltic countries would be prepared for people studying or working in neighboring countries.
According to her, the stricter travel restrictions will not introduce new restrictions within the country. “We can decide freer relationships with our neighbors, but this increases the risk that we will have to impose stricter restrictions at the national level as morbidity rates increase, which I don’t think our society really wants, because we now live lives almost normal with very few restrictions. ” I. Vinkelė told Latvian radio.
Neighbors accused of ‘non-compliance’
The Latvian minister stated that the higher incidence in Lithuania and Estonia may be due to the fact that these countries allowed international travel too freely.
By opening their borders a few months ago, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia agreed to strict rules for their residents traveling outside the Baltic states, but Estonia and Lithuania began “unilaterally, without even informing Latvia” of not following these rules, Vinkelė said. . “They have started to fly much more freely, … they have introduced many more control formalities that seem strict, angry and political, but not very useful in terms of epidemiological safety, and here we are seeing results,” said the minister.
In his opinion, in Lithuania and Estonia, the political arguments outweighed the opinion of the specialists.
Lithuanian Health Minister A. Veryga said Thursday that there were discussions with the Latvian government about flights from the affected countries, but said he thought the accusations were unfounded. “Perhaps the only comment is about flights from the affected countries, but we have a very strict procedure for those who come from the affected countries, people have to isolate themselves, they have to come with tests no longer than 72 hours, if they are not our citizens . , our citizens can do it here ”, said A. Veryga.
“And because of some particularly strict measures, I don’t know what Latvians are talking about, because you can probably name two measures, which we don’t have and Latvians have: two meters, the distance is smoother, we have one meter in many places. distance, and another measure is the time of night catering, such institutions can work with them for up to 24 hours, “said the Lithuanian minister.
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