Czech travelers may face quarantine when entering Germany, says Deputy Foreign Minister

Prague/Berlin, Sept 4 (CTK) – Germany is considering having people from Prague, or even the whole Czech Republic, enter a five-day quarantine upon arrival, Czech Deputy Foreign Minister Martin Smolek told Czech Radio (CRo) today.

The German Foreign Ministry told CTK today that it was closely watching the epidemical situation in the Czech Republic.

Czech ambassador to Germany Tomas Kafka has recommended that Czechs planning trips to Germany should bear in mind the developments in their homeland in the days to come.

Today, the Czech Republic toughened the conditions for trips to the Canary Islands. Before, they had an exemption and unlike Spain, a negative COVID-19 test or start of quarantine was not required from Czechs when returning.

However, the negative test will be required when returning from the Canary Islands as of September 14, the Foreign Ministry said today. It also warned of the trips to France.

Smolek said the Foreign Ministry had information that Germany was considering toughening the conditions, but no definitive decision had been made.

“A regime with the need of a five-day quarantine, perhaps combined with a test, is being considered either for the whole Czech Republic or Prague,” Smolek told CRo station Radiozurnal.

“The German Foreign Ministry is closely watching the epidemiological situation in the Czech Republic. The evaluation of risk areas is updated every week. A whole country or a region is immediately listed if it is necessary at the moment,” the German Foreign Ministry has told CTK.

German diplomatic sources have told CTK that the Czech Republic still has not reached the limit to be listed as a risk region. This is 50 infected per 100,000 population in seven days.

Even if the figure were reached, the region is not automatically listed as risky, but this is likely. A number of major European regions have been classified so, Czech ambassador to Germany Tomas Kafka said.

Along with authorities in Germany, German media also watched the developments in the Czech Republic during the summer holiday.

In August, the lifestyle portal Noizz wrote about the Czech Republic as a parallel world to Germany. It said that with the exception of compulsory face masks in the underground and half-empty streets, life in Prague took place as if there were no coronavirus.

“No one was wearing any face masks in trams and buses,” the portal said.

The portal said it was nice to see lots of easy-going people at parties after such a long time, though it was also somewhat shocking.

It cited as an example the disco Karlovy Lazne in Prague, which had a long queue at its entrance.

“Parties at the time of coronavirus? Unthinkable in Berlin. In Prague common since June,” the portal said.

Ten days ago, the German daily Bild wrote that most people in the Czech Republic had the feeling that the coronavirus was a matter of the past.

As the news rapidly spread in Germany, Germans have been flocking to parties in Prague, Bild added.

Due to the recent development of the infection, the Czech Republic considers France riskier, Smolek said.

“As of today, we will be strongly warning, not recommending trips to France since it may be soon withdrawn from our green list,” he added. Green means a low risk of the infection on the country’s map of safe travel locations.