23 July 2020 09:57 pm
The European Union (EU) has updated the list of countries for which its member states should gradually lift travel restrictions at the external borders, but Sri Lanka has not yet been included in the list.
A statement issued by the European Council on July 16 said the Council updated the list of countries following the first review under the recommendation on the gradual lifting of the temporary restrictions on non-essential travel into the EU.
“This list will continue to be reviewed and, as the case may be, updated every two weeks,” it said.
Based on the criteria and conditions set out in the recommendation, the statement said member states should gradually lift the travel restrictions at the external borders for residents of the following countries from July 16.
Algeria, Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, Morocco, New Zealand, Rwanda, South Korea, Thailand, Tunisia, Uruguay and China (subject to confirmation of reciprocity).
On June 30, the European Council adopted a recommendation on the gradual lifting of the temporary restrictions on non-essential travel into the EU, including an initial list of countries for which member states should start lifting the travel restrictions at the external borders.
Earlier, the EU Embassy in Sri Lanka said that the absence of a country on the list should not be considered as being blacklisted.