• EU’s APCD says Covid-19 screening is “unjustified”
• Italy urged the EU to verify and quarantine Chinese cargo on Thursday.
• In the UK, a minister said the issue was “under review”.

The European Union‘s Agency for the Prevention and Control of Diseases has stated that screening travelers coming from China for Covid-19 would be “unjustified.”

On Thursday, Italy encouraged the rest of the EU to follow Italy’s lead and ensure that Chinese shipments were checked, and quarantined if required.

Italy’s move came after the Chinese government announced that it was suspending imports of some agricultural products from the EU.

In addition to China, the United States, Japan, Taiwan, and India have all declared that they will be implementing mandatory testing in the near future.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, however, stated that they did not anticipate the outbreak to have any effect on the EU.

After nearly three years of keeping the borders closed, the Chinese government made the decision on January 8 to let individuals move more freely within the country. This decision sparked some concerns among citizens.

On Thursday, health authorities from the EU met in Brussels for discussions to coordinate any possible reaction.

The ECDC said: “The BF7 omicron variant, which is prevalent in China, is already present in Europe and failed to become dominant.

“However, we remain vigilant and will be ready to use the emergency brake if necessary.”

In the UK, a minister said the issue was “under review”.

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