Travelers from China will have to present a negative test for Covid-19 to enter the Netherlands due to the outbreak of cases in this country, the Ministry of Health announced on Friday January 6.
The measure will come into effect from January 10 and follows the advice of the European Union (EU), the ministry said in a statement.
"
I think it is important that we take travel measures as part of the fight against Covid-19 at European level,
" Dutch Health Minister Ernst Kuipers said in the statement.
The EU this week strongly encouraged its member states to impose screening carried out in China before the flight and encouraged the Twenty-Seven to complete the negative test with “
random tests
” on arrival on European soil.
The Dutch government also “
strongly
” advises from Friday the wearing of a medical mask on flights to and from China.
"
And the government is exploring the possibilities of testing toilet waste water from planes flying in from China for virus mutations
," the ministry added.
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Unprecedented wave of contamination
Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport is one of the largest European airports, a hub where many intercontinental transfers take place.
China has been facing an unprecedented wave of contamination for three years.
As a precaution, several countries including the United States, Japan, France and Germany have already decreed identical measures.
Beijing on Tuesday condemned the imposition of Covid tests by certain countries, deeming them "
unacceptable
" and threatening "
countermeasures
".