MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th February, 2021) France is in talks with Germany in a bid to avert border restrictions in its borderline Moselle region, which Berlin designated as a COVID-19 area of concern, French Minister for European Affairs Clement Beaune told the France Inter broadcaster on Sunday.
Earlier this week the French government included Moselle in the list of areas under "enhanced surveillance" due to high COVID-19 occurrence rates. Berlin, in turn, suspended all travel from Moselle and ordered that starting Tuesday, those entering Germany from this French region present a negative PCR test taken no earlier than 48 hours before the travel.
"We are in discussions with the German authorities which have just classified Moselle as a [coronavirus] variant circulation zone. This classification implies the introduction of very strict measures, virtually the closure of the borders. This is what we want to avoid," Beaune said.
According to the French official, the restrictions will affect some 16,000 people, who cross the French-German border for working purposes.
Beaune said that Paris was trying to "mitigate these measures as much as possible," in particular, regarding the frequency of tests.
Germany has already reinforced border restrictions with the Czech Republic and Austria after designating some of their areas as exposed to virus mutations earlier this month.
