HELSINKI (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd September, 2020) Finland will reintroduce border controls with Estonia due to the worsening epidemiological situation in the Baltic nation on September 28, where daily COVID-19 coronavirus infection rates continue to rise, Finnish Interior Minister Maria Osihalo said on Tuesday.
The borders of Finland and Estonia were closed from March to June with a gradual easing of restrictions for the movement of labor migrants. Tourism between the countries has been restored since June. On Monday, Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said that Finland would introduce a two-week quarantine requirement for tourists coming from Estonia starting on September 28.
"According to the data from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, we can assume that internal border controls will be restored, in particular for traffic from Estonia, since the 14-day cumulative number of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people exceeds 25," Osihalo said, as quoted Ilta-Sanomat newspaper.
The 14-day cumulative number of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people in Estonia currently stands at 30.85.
The government of Finland has allowed entry into the country starting on September 19 without the need to be quarantined from countries where the 14-day cumulative number of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people does not exceed 25.
The newspaper notes that the Finnish authorities are preparing for the next revision of the recommendations for tourism, which will be made public on September 24.
