The European Commission calls on Sweden to withdraw the entry ban against Denmark and Norway.
This was stated by the Commission's spokesperson for justice issues, Christian Wigand, to the Direkt news agency on Tuesday.
On Monday, Justice Commissioner Ylva Johansson sent letters to Sweden and five other EU countries calling on them to change their travel restrictions, especially entry and exit bans.
The other five countries are Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany and Hungary.
”"Sweden's ban does not comply with the EU countries' agreement on travel restrictions. We believe that the Swedish rules are disproportionately harsh, that the goal can be achieved by other means," said Christian Wigand.
Nevertheless, the EU summit on January 21 agreed that all non-essential travel to and from areas with high infection rates should be strongly discouraged. (These areas are defined as red or dark red according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) color map.)
”The restriction of travel can be achieved in other ways, such as with requirements for Covid testing and quarantine,” said Christian Wigand.
Sweden prohibits entry from Denmark and Norway with the exception of EU/EEA citizens who work or live in Sweden, or who transport goods.
Sweden has ten days to respond to the Commission.
The Commission wants to find a solution as soon as possible, without having to start a legal procedure, which takes a long time, said Christian Wigand.
Source: Nyhetsbyrån Direkt
