Since June 15th, many European countries have reopened their borders to EU travelers, starting with France, as well as Belgium, Germany, and even Greece. Spain is said to welcome tourists again from June 21st, and Portugal from July 1st. July 1st also marks the day France has chosen to progressively reopen its borders external to the Schengen area. "This opening will be progressive and different depending on the health situation of the different countries, in compliance with the modalities set on a European level until then" Minister of the Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian and Secretary of the Interior Christophe Castaner have announced in a joint press release.
Yet, other countries in the world expect to keep their borders closed for a while. This is the case of Australia. The country of kangaroos and koalas is said not to open its borders to international travelers before next year. This is what Australian Minister of Trade Simon Birmingham implied in an address on June 17th
Yet, the Minister said that entrance conditions will be made softer for students and long-term travelers. The latter will be allowed to enter Australia if they go on lockdown, as Australians going back to their country already do. “We can simply work through the 14-day quarantine periods that have worked so well in terms of returning Australians to this country safely” Birmingham said when addressing at the National Press Club.
For the record, a bit over 7,300 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in Australia. 102 people have died of the novel coronavirus in the country.
