The European Commission wants to convince Malta to reverse its decision to close its borders to unvaccinated people, European Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders said on Monday.
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Malta said on Friday to be the first country in the European Union to close its borders to unvaccinated travelers, hoping to stem an upsurge in new cases of Covid-19.
But on French public radio France Inter, Didier Reynders recalled that the adoption of the health pass by the EU was binding on member countries.
Upcoming discussions to get PCR testing accepted
“
There were two decisions: the certificate that we put in place and which is binding on all European States, as proof of your situation with regard to the disease.
And then there is a recommendation adopted by the 27 States, which starts from the idea that the passport is sufficient in itself, unless the health situation were to deteriorate,
”explained the Commissioner.
"
We will therefore discuss with Malta so that it accepts the PCR tests
," he added.
"
Depending on the level of contamination by the Delta variant (...), it is normal that we resume measures, testing and quarantine, but no travel ban
," he continued.
A decision "
against the rules
" of the EU
The small Mediterranean island of 500,000 inhabitants boasts of being the most vaccinated country in the EU, with 79% of the adult population having received two doses of the vaccine.
On June 27, she had not recorded any new cases but on Friday, health authorities identified 96, 90% of which were unvaccinated.
Read also: Malta closes its borders to unvaccinated travelers
His decision to no longer accept PCR tests was judged Sunday "
against the rules
" of the EU by the French Secretary of State for European Affairs Clément Beaune. "
We have not always succeeded in coordinating in Europe during this crisis but for once, we have a health pass (...) which is the same everywhere in Europe
" he insisted. "
What Malta has done (...) should alert us to the fact that if the situation deteriorates, the temptations to close, sometimes even contrary to the rules, multiply
", he stressed, while noting that it was "
not a question of sanctioning Malta
".
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