EU doesn’t follow Italy with COVID checks on China arrivals

By RAF CASERT
Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union is assessing Beijing’s rollback of its strict anti-infection controls but has refrained from immediately following EU member Italy in requiring coronavirus tests for airline passengers coming from China. The EU’s executive arm says the BF7 omicron variant prevalent in China was already circulating in Europe and that its threat hadn’t significantly grown. Considering the reluctance from several nations and experts, health officials from the 27-member bloc said after meeting on Thursday that they would continue talks on seeking a common approach to travel rules. After lifting travel restrictions imposed during the height of the pandemic, EU members agreed an “emergency brake” could be activated at short notice to meet an unexpected challenge.