Europe, once again the epicenter of the pandemic 1:07
Paris (CNN) - The
United States has reopened its borders to vaccinated international travelers, ending a 20-month travel ban just as Europe is battling a surge in covid-19 cases that has pushed the continent back to the epicenter of the pandemic.
Fully vaccinated travelers from 33 countries, including the UK and much of Europe, can now enter the US without the need to self-quarantine, provided they have proof of vaccination and a negative viral test.
The United States reopens its borders for vaccinated travelers: what vaccines are valid to enter?
Families and friends separated since the start of the pandemic arrived at airports in major European cities on Monday morning, excited to see their loved ones for the first time since former President Donald Trump imposed strict travel restrictions in the beginning. from the pandemic in an effort to control the virus.
Families are reunited in the US after long separation due to 1:14 restrictions
But beyond these happy scenes is a darker backdrop.
Europe is suffering from a new wave of coronavirus cases, and the World Health Organization (WHO) warned last week that the region is once again "at the epicenter" of the pandemic.
Large swaths of Europe are struggling to cope with waves of the delta variant, amid the relaxation of restrictions and the faltering application of vaccines in some countries, and the WHO has warned that half a million people in Europe could die of covid -19 in a potentially devastating winter.
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Germany on Monday recorded its highest incidence rate in seven days since the pandemic began.
On the same day, neighboring Austria banned unvaccinated people from entering restaurants and hotels amid a spike in cases.
Iceland has also reintroduced the use of face masks and social distancing rules after a rebound.
And cases are hovering at record levels in Russia, Ukraine and Greece.
From Paris to the USA, with love
France has also seen a sharp spike in cases in the past month, and President Emmanuel Macron will address the nation on Tuesday, his first major television address since July, when he announced a controversial mandate for vaccines for all workers in the Health.
Nonetheless, a steady stream of masked travelers arrived at Paris's bustling Charles de Gaulle Airport on Monday morning, excited to finally see their loved ones in America.
The airport departure board was filled almost consecutively with flights to destinations in the U.S. Some travelers wondered if this was an opportunity to see loved ones before another wave of COVID-19 in Europe cut them off from the disease. world again.
One traveler, Maxime Barei, told CNN that he was on his way to visit his two sons in Los Angeles, where they are studying. It is the first time that you can go to the United States in two years. "We can call it freedom," Barei said, adding: "I hope it continues." Amid uncertainty about another wave in Europe, he said: "I don't know if the borders will be closed again at another time."
Another woman, Maria Giribet Caldentey, was also heading to California to see her twin grandchildren, having postponed the trip once before due to border closures.
"I'm leaving the first day they let me go ... I have butterflies," he said.
It is the first time that Caldentey has traveled alone, after the death of her husband last year, and she admits to having had some nerves around the trip.
But most of all, she was relieved to finally embark on a journey she "has been dreaming of since July."
Many European airlines, including Lufthansa, Virgin Atlantic, Swiss Air and British Airways, reported full or near-full flights on the first day the US reopened to vaccinated international travelers.
What does the US ask of people trying to enter the country?
4:43
British Airways and Virgin Atlantic celebrated the easing of restrictions with a double takeoff of their first flights from London Heathrow Airport to New York's JFK Airport.
Air France said it would increase its capacity after the US announcement led to a significant increase in bookings, particularly on routes to New York, Miami and Los Angeles during the Christmas holiday period.
"After an unprecedented 18-month shutdown, today we celebrate the reopening of the US s almost 76% of the adult population of the EU that has since been vaccinated against covid-19. European airlines hope to reunite families and friends who have been separated for too long, "Europe's largest airline association Airlines 4 Europe said in a statement.
'Good for the economy, good for the people'
Meanwhile, in parts of Europe, experts have expressed concern that an increase in the number of infections, coupled with seasonal winter colds, could put healthcare workers under unmanageable pressure during Christmas and the New Year.
On Monday, the daily rate of COVID-19 infection in Germany rose to 201.1 cases per 100,000 people, its highest level since the start of the pandemic, according to the country's Robert Koch Infectious Diseases Institute (RKI).
In some eastern states, such as Saxony and Thuringia, the incident rate was more than double, over 400.
However, there was little mention of the increase in cases among German politicians who welcomed the reopening of travel to the United States on Monday, with Economy and Technology Minister Peter Altmaier welcoming the move in a statement and saying it was "Good for our transatlantic relations, good for the economy and good for the people."
So far, nearly 80% of the German adult population has been fully vaccinated, a figure slightly lower than in other major EU countries such as France, Spain and Italy, according to the European Center for Disease Control (ECDC).
But deployment has been extremely uneven across the bloc;
on the other hand, Romania and Bulgaria have fully vaccinated only 40% and 27% of their adults, respectively.
Know which vaccines will allow you to enter the US 0:42
Elsewhere, the UK has been enduring a stubborn streak of new infections since late summer, but has resisted implementing measures like mask mandates or vaccine passes that have become commonplace across Europe.
The United States has suffered its own devastating toll of Covid-19, recording more than 46 million cases and more than 754,400 deaths, the highest number in the world, according to John Hopkins University (JHU).
More recently, COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations have decreased nationally, although there have been regional peaks.
Earlier this month, the world passed the grim milestone of 5 million deaths from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, a mark that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called "a painful new threshold."
Sheena McKenzie wrote in London. Melissa Bell and Joseph Ataman contributed reporting from Paris. Chris Liakos, Anna Cooban, Rob Picheta, Stephanie Halasz, Ivana Kottasova, and Fred Pleitgen contributed to this report.
