EU Summit Postponed After Michel Guard Catches Virus

Fahad Shabbir (@FahadShabbir) Published September 23, 2020 | 01:40 AM

Brussels, Sept 22 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Sep, 2020 ) :A European Union leaders' summit due to start on Thursday has been postponed after a security guard tested positive for coronavirus, forcing EU chief Charles Michel to quarantine.

Spokesman Barend Leyts tweeted that Michel, the president of the European Council, decided to reschedule the meeting for October 1.

Michel had learnt that "a security officer, with whom he was in close contact early last week, tested positive for COVID", Leyts said.

"The President is tested regularly and tested negative yesterday.

Respecting Belgian rules, he has gone into quarantine as of today."The extraordinary summit had been called to discuss foreign affairs and was set to be dominated by the crises in Belarus and in the eastern Mediterranean, where Turkey and Greece are in a standoff over gas drilling.

European leaders and ministers have resumed face-to-face meetings under social distancing rules, but EU officials in Brussels still abide by Belgium's lockdown rules imposed to battle the pandemic.