Spain Opens Its Borders Amid COVID Surge, Relaxations Have Led To Rebound In Infections

The COVID-19 outbreak ravages across the globe, but the weekend witnessed a relative relaxation of sorts in Spain, as a slew of restrictions were lifted in order to bolster the tourism industry, as a state of emergency came to an end.

The opening of its border with France on Sunday was confirmed by EU officials who asserted that the highest standards of safety and social distancing would be maintained. “We must remain on our guard and strictly follow hygiene and protection measures,” said Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Saturday to a media outlet, hinting at how there was still a long way to go before things could return to normal. The new move makes Spain’s border open to all the European Union, barring Portugal.

Spain continues to remain one of the nations in Europe to be the hardest hit by the pandemic, but the acute recession has pushed the government to bring forth relaxations to get the tourism economy up and running. Tourism accounts for a sizeable 12 percent of the economy. On Sunday, scores of Europeans took to the streets with cars passing through the newly opened Spain-France border.

As per the current news, British tourists will be permitted into the nation without having to quarantine, while they will still have to observe the mandatory 14 days isolation on their return.

“We will allow British visitors to enter Spain just like the rest of the European Union or Schengen area from 21 June freely and without the need for the quarantine,” said foreign minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya as per a media outlet on Saturday.

The United States of America is likely to follow suit, despite the grim reality. While the country occupies the top spot in the list of countries to be worse-affected by the novel coronavirus, president Donald Trump has made it clear that the easing of the lockdown will not be revoked -- despite there being a rebound in infections—and held his first rally in months on Saturday.

Things aren’t looking up for Brazil either, with its people losing faith in the Bolsonaro led government. The country logged in 50,000 deaths and over a million cases, upping the count in Latin America over two million.

Coronavirus continues to claim the lives of millions of people worldwide. Approximately 460,000 people have succumbed to the highly contagious virus, and over nine million have tested positive.