The Diplomat in Spain

The Diplomat

The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, has been participating in the European Council meeting in Brussels since yesterday, where he will try to achieve a “harmonised response at European level” to the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in areas such as quarantines and mobility.

After a first day dedicated to relations with the United Kingdom (in which the EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, participated) and to climate change, the second and final day of the Council will begin today with a debate on the current epidemiological situation, with special attention to general coordination and the work carried out by the EU in developing and distributing vaccines.

In this regard, Pedro Sánchez stated yesterday, on his arrival at the Council, that Spain’s intention is to “convey the need for all countries to act together”. “I think we have taken some very important steps”, in areas such as the creation of “a map of territorial dangers in relation to the pandemic” or the “mutual recognition of tests”, but “Spain would like to continue to harmonise this response at European level, for example in the area of quarantines or also in the area of mobility restriction”, he continued.

Last Tuesday, the EU’s General Affairs Council recommended that coordinated measures for the free movement of people in the context of COVID-19 should conform to regionalisation criteria and that diagnostic tests should be introduced as a possible alternative to quarantines. The Spanish Government welcomed this recommendation, which “reflects Spain’s position on fundamental elements” and which could help to save the winter tourist season in the Canary and Balearic Islands.