Germany puts out welcome mat for UK

Vaccinated travelers from the United Kingdom and four other countries can visit Germany again. Berlin's decision to lift its coronavirus-related travel ban was foreshadowed by Chancellor Angela Merkel during a visit to the United Kingdom last week.

She said at the time: "As you know, we are reviewing continuously our travel restrictions and we think that, in the foreseeable future, those who have received double jabs will … be able to travel again without having to go into quarantine."

Merkel said the Delta variant of the novel coronavirus had become so widespread in her country that the ban, which was introduced to keep it at bay, had become redundant.

Vaccinated travelers from the other four nations－India, Nepal, Portugal, and Russia－will also be allowed to visit Germany without restrictions. The relaxations take effect immediately.

Germany said people from the five countries who have not had a vaccination will still need to spend up to 10 days in isolation, or five days if they test negative for the virus on the fifth day of that quarantine.

The rules prohibiting arrivals from the five nations, which Berlin called "virus variant areas", were so strict that even Germans returning home from the countries were compelled to spend up to 14 days in quarantine before the relaxation.

'High-incidence areas'

The Robert Koch Institute, Germany's federal agency responsible for disease control and prevention, said the five nations will now be reclassified as "high-incidence areas".

The BBC noted that Germany's relaxation of its travel restrictions followed the UK's confirmation that it will remove all its coronavirus-related restrictions on July 19.

The broadcaster said London is widely expected to announce in the coming days that fully vaccinated UK residents will be allowed to travel to medium-risk nations without the need for them to go into quarantine upon their return. Most of Europe is likely to be on that medium-risk list of nations.

The Independent newspaper said Germany had previously had some of the tightest border controls aimed at arrivals from the UK. The rules had been in place since May 23, when the Delta variant first caused serious concern.

Germany, meanwhile, hopes to be able to lift its remaining coronavirus-linked social and economic restrictions as soon as all adults have been offered a vaccine, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Tuesday.

The Guardian newspaper said the point when all adults in Germany have been offered a jab should be reached during August.

"When everyone in Germany has received a vaccine offer, there is no longer a legal or political justification for any kind of restriction," Maas said.

So far, 56.5 percent of the nation's population have received at least one dose of a vaccine, and around 39 percent are fully vaccinated, according to health ministry data.