EU "Most Member States Support COVID Testing for Travelers from China"

Tomorrow's Implementation Plan Confirmed

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] The European Union (EU) is expected to mandate COVID-19 testing before departure for travelers arriving from China.

On the 3rd (local time), according to major foreign media, the EU Health Security Committee announced via Twitter that "EU member states have agreed on a coordinated approach to changes in the COVID-19 situation, including the impact of increased travelers from China."

The EU held a meeting attended by health officials from each country, focusing on three key measures: pre-departure COVID-19 testing for travelers from China, enhanced wastewater monitoring, and strengthened surveillance within the EU. According to the Health Security Committee’s explanation of the 'coordinated approach,' there is a possibility that mandatory pre-arrival testing for travelers from China will be implemented across the EU. An EU spokesperson also stated, "An overwhelming majority of member states support pre-departure COVID-19 testing," leaving the possibility open. Currently, some countries within the EU, such as Italy and France, require mandatory COVID-19 testing for travelers arriving from China.

On the 2nd, airport officials were sorting arrivals from China at the arrival hall of Terminal 1, Incheon International Airport. Starting that day, quarantine authorities began implementing high-intensity quarantine measures, including conducting COVID-19 PCR tests on all individuals entering from China by air or sea.
/ Yeongjongdo - Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

Specific implementation measures are expected to be finalized after further discussions at the Integrated Political Crisis Response Mechanism meeting scheduled for the 4th.

Some speculate that if COVID-19 testing for travelers from China is mandated across the EU, China may retaliate. Mao Ning, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, warned at a regular briefing that "some countries’ entry restrictions targeting only China lack scientific basis, and some excessive measures are even more unacceptable," and threatened to take 'reciprocal measures.'