Germany, France Lead EU Push for Covid-19 Curbs on India Flights

(Bloomberg) -- Germany, France and other European Union governments called on the rest of the bloc to join them in curbing travel from India as the country struggles to cope with record levels of Covid-19 infections.

At a meeting of ambassadors on Wednesday, several officials expressed concern over the risk of possible coronavirus variants in India triggering a fourth wave in Europe and urged the EU to quickly adopt restrictions, according to a diplomatic note seen by Bloomberg.

During the same meeting, the European Commission said it would soon propose an emergency mechanism to allow the bloc to rapidly address the arrival of new strains. The commission said it had asked the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control to look at variants of concern and come up with criteria and mapping to allow for coordinated decisions about how to respond. Some member states welcomed the idea, the note says.

The push comes as Indian authorities and hospitals are struggling to cope with unprecedented levels of Covid infections and deaths. Official data Thursday showed new cases rose by 379,257 over the prior 24 hours, a daily record for any country. Another 3,645 people died, bringing the country’s official death toll to 204,800.

Several EU member states are sending aid and medical equipment to India.

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